Off The Beaten Path
by les16
Summary: The outtakes/futuretakes for the story The Path We Choose. Follow along with our favorite couple and the WonderTwins and see missing pieces and future events. Babies, weddings, lemons, and lots more!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: SM owns Twilight. No copyright infringement is intended.**

**Hi again! Welcome to the first outtake of The Path We Choose. This turned out to be a lot longer than I planned on, I hope you don't mind! If you remember, we left off with our Daddyward finding out he was gonna be...a daddy! We pick up right from there. **

**Thanks goes to Laurel, who always does so much to help me, and not just by making my words prettier!**

**This chapter is dedicated to my BFF~ Hope you enjoy your belated birthday present! I love you more than words!**

**Now, on with the story...Oh, and LEMON ALERT! **

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Outtake # 1 – Bella's Pregnancy**

**EPOV~ Mid January 2012**

"Say that again," I begged, praying to God I wasn't losing my fucking mind and Bella had just said what I thought she said.

One look at her beaming smile and the tears that fell unchecked down her gorgeous face was all the proof I really needed, but I wanted to hear the words again. Needed them.

She nodded her head, the smile she wore somehow grew even bigger and she said, "Edward, I'm pregnant."

Every ounce of air I had in my body left it in one fell swoop. I felt lightheaded and my knees totally gave out as I fell to the floor.

Pregnant! My Bella was pregnant. We were going to have a baby!

Holy shit!

I picked my head up, as I still knelt on the floor and stared at her. All of a sudden I swore I could envision her months from now, her hair up in a ponytail, a short dress on, covering a very prominent baby bump. She was very pregnant, totally gorgeous, and all fucking mine. I looked further past and could picture her lying in bed, cradling a baby with a head full of brown hair against her chest as she smiled lovingly at the bundle. It all took my breath away, well, what little I'd managed to get back. I shook my head and tried to focus on right now and as I stared at Bella, my wife, the mother of our unborn child, and narrowed my eyes at her when she began to laugh at me.

I raised an eyebrow at her, realizing she hadn't moved yet, but then again neither had I. "What?" I asked, still on my knees because for some reason I couldn't get my body to move.

Bella crossed her arms and squinted at me as I kept looking at her, opening and closing my mouth, unable to form even the smallest of words. My mind was a jumbled mess, and I knew I must have looked like a raving lunatic kneeling on the floor, in a stupor, but damn.

"Edward, don't you have anything else to say to me?" Bella asked and the tone of her voice did a damn fine job of snapping me back to reality.

"Oh, fuck! Baby," I stammered as I looked at her. Thankfully she took pity on my moronic ass and walked over to me. She held her hands out to me and as much as I wanted to pull her down on the floor with me, there was no fucking way I was doing anything that had even the remotest chance of hurting her.

"You are such an idiot." Bella giggled as she took my hands in hers and helped me up off the floor. "From the looks of it, it's a good thing I told you at home or else you'd have passed out on me out in public someplace. And then what would all your fans think?" she teased once I was finally upright.

I swept her up in my arms in a flash and crushed my lips against hers before she barely had time to breathe. After kissing the shit out of her until we were both breathing heavy, I pulled back slightly. "Ask me how much what anyone besides you thinks means to me?" I asked as I bent my head down to kiss her again.

_She was really pregnant_, I thought to myself as I felt her shift in my arms.

"You're really pregnant?" I asked again, still not quite believing it was all happening. I knew Travis and Tanya both had told us not to be upset if it took some time for Bella to get pregnant. I never would have imagined it would happen so soon for us.

I carried her over to the bed and gently laid her in the center of it. I crawled on the bed after her and she reached out and ran her fingers through my hair when I laid my head down on her stomach. "I am. I'm sorry I didn't tell you that I thought I was pregnant. You're not upset I waited until I was sure are you?" she asked in a very worried voice.

I picked my head up so I could look at her, really look at her. "Bella, no," I told her honestly. "Sure I would have loved to have been with you when you got the news from Travis but I know how worried you've been about being able to have a baby, even after the surgery and all. Everything looks good, right?" I asked, a million thoughts racing through my mind as I went over a quick list of things to ask Travis the next time I saw him.

Bella nodded her head and then said, "All Travis did was confirm that I was pregnant and write down a few preliminary notes. He did a quick exam, but I wouldn't let him let me hear the heartbeat because I wanted to wait for you. As long as he heard it and he said things so far looked good, all I wanted to do was tell you."

"You waited to hear the heartbeat?" I asked as tears immediately stung my eyes. I couldn't believe she did that, well actually I could, and I knew immediately how much I appreciated the fact that she did. "Thank you, Angel," I said softly as I moved so that I was above her. I held myself up on my elbows, careful not to hurt her, though I knew better than that. "I can't begin to tell you how much that means to me," I told her as I began to pepper her face with light kisses. "I want to share every moment with you: every ache and pain, every backache that needs a massage, every craving, no matter what time it is...everything, Bella. You have given me so damn much," I whispered against her lips before allowing myself to press my lips firmly against hers. "So much," I said again as my need for her continued to grow.

I slowly slid down her body and then pushed up the t-shirt she had thrown on earlier after our little interlude from before. That one was quick and needy. This time I planned on showing Bella just how much I loved her, every part of her. "Hi, little one," I said softly against her stomach when I moved the shirt out of the way. "You are so loved already," I said and my voice caught in my throat. It was amazing how less than thirty minutes ago I didn't know the baby existed, but now that I did, I loved it with everything I had. "Your mama tried to pull a fast one on Daddy. Can you believe that? Sending me an email to let me know you were here," I teased and chuckled when I heard her giggle.

"Edward," she said with a sweet tone when I looked up at her. Her eyes were shining from the tears I could see leak from the sides of her eyes, but I knew they were happy tears.

I kissed her stomach again before moving back up her body. "Bella," I said with a grin and before I knew it, she had pulled my head down against hers and attacked my mouth. She kissed me, hard, and in no time we had each been rid of our clothes. I swept my eyes down her body and noticed, well now that I knew she was pregnant, the subtle changes in her body already. Her breasts were just a bit fuller, her stomach looked just the tiniest bit bigger, but she looked absolutely magnificent.

"A baby," I said again in an awed whisper.

"A baby," Bella answered in much the same voice and then she shifted her hips and I slid inside of her. Effortlessly, instinctively...much like the way we loved each other outside of the bedroom, not just in it. She was my everything, and I knew she felt the same about me. We were partners in all we did, parenting Maddie and Masen, and now a new little one.

I began to move in and out slowly and felt her squeeze me as I moved. There was nothing else that mattered but her at this point, nothing. "You are everything to me," I told her, forcing the words past the lump in my throat. I swallowed a few times so that I could speak some more. "My whole world is wrapped up in you. Nothing means anything without you," I said as I stared into her eyes.

My hips swiveled against hers and she began to throw her head back and I could tell she was about to close her eyes, but I couldn't have that. "Please don't," I choked out, knowing that I needed her to stay connected to me. "Keep looking at me. I need you to look at me," I told her again, feeling as if my heart was about to explode from all the thoughts and emotions flowing through me.

Her brown eyes found mine and she held my gaze. They were worried eyes for a moment and then they softened as she stared at me. "I'm okay," I answered her unspoken question and she smiled tenderly at me.

"I love you, Edward," she said in her gentle voice and it was all I needed to put me back together again.

"Always and forever, my love," I told her before dipping my head down and making a trail of kisses across her collarbones from one side of her body to the other. Then back again and up the side of her neck to the spot behind her ear. "You always smell and taste so damn good," I rasped in her ear as I pressed myself more fully inside of her.

"Oh God, Edward," she moaned in a breathy and sexy as hell voice.

"That's it, Isabella, I can feel you squeezing me, pulling me deeper inside of you," I said as I panted in her ear. I flicked my tongue against her earlobe and reached up with my left hand and slid it beneath her head and into her hair. "Can you feel how hard I am inside of you? Can you feel what you do to me?" I asked her as I continued my slow, steady rhythm.

"Yes, oh Edward...yes," she cried out and I held her head in place so that I could look at her once more.

"Bella," I breathed out as I lost myself in her bottomless brown eyes. The eyes I had the privilege of seeing first thing when I woke in the morning and the last things I saw before going to sleep at night.

"I love you so much it hurts sometimes," I whispered as her breathing came in quicker bursts. Her eyes still were focused on me and I could tell my statement confused her. "Not it a bad way, but in that way that keeps me connected to you. The way it hurts when we're apart, the way you are a part of me and I'm a part of you." She smiled at that and I smiled back at her.

The air was thick around us, the sounds of our breathing and our bodies moving as one the only noise in the room. "I have never felt closer to you or more connected to you than I do right this second," I whispered and bent my head down to kiss her forehead. "We will always be a part of each other now, through our baby."

"Edward, oh sweetheart," she said as she took a deep breath. "My Superman," she giggled and though what was happening was deep and profound and as soul touching a moment as any we had ever shared before, I couldn't help but chuckle at how adorable she was.

"Well, guess that makes you really Superwoman now, huh?" I teased back and nipped at the skin on her shoulder. "You, my love, my wife, are going to be the most pampered, spoiled, mama-to-be you have ever seen," I promised her and laughed even more when she growled at me. "Shut it. You had to know the second you found out you were pregnant, that I was going to do everything in my power to make it so that you won't have to do anything but glow and let our baby grow inside of you for nine months."

I ground my hips against hers and smirked when she moaned out in pleasure. "Let me have this, Angel. Let me show you every day how much you mean to me, how much I love you and our kids, our life, our family."

My mouth found hers again and my tongue slid inside of hers and I kissed her with all I had. Bella wrapped her arms around me, pulling me closer to her, so close there wasn't an inch of our bodies that wasn't touching. "I'm so close, Edward," she panted in my ear.

"Together. Come with me," I said against the side of her neck.

I felt Bella raise her hips to meet each of my thrusts and it didn't take but three smooth, deep strokes until I felt her walls flutter and spasm around me as she came which caused me to come right after. Our mutual orgasm seemed to last and last until I finally had to collapse on top of her.

As soon as I realized what I was doing I tried to roll off her, but she wrapped her arms around me and held me against her. "Edward, you're not going to hurt me. Stop freaking out...already. We have a long way to go and I'll tell you right now - I'm not putting up with nine months of you acting crazy over every little thing. I'm nervous enough as it is about all this. I don't need you freaking out, too."

Okay that statement was more than enough to stop my crazy train. "Bella?" I questioned and picked my head up to look at her. She was biting her lip and her hands had stilled on my back. Bad signs, both of them. "You don't have anything to worry about. You'll be fine, the baby will be fine, and I promise I will try not to be too overprotective, but you have to know it's not going to work," I told her with a grin. I was only telling the truth, no sense even trying to sidestep that issue.

She groaned and rolled her eyes at me because she knew I wasn't lying either.

I pulled out of her and rolled on my side, taking her with me. I laid my hand over her stomach, marveling that something the size of a lima bean was, right this second, growing inside of her and in nine months would be a baby boy or girl.

Smiling at my internal musings, I began to rub small circles on her stomach. It was a habit I was sure would get more and more pronounced as we went along. I mean, I'd known Bella was pregnant for only a little over an hour and I already couldn't stop touching her.

Bella yawned and I chuckled at her. "And so it begins," I told her quietly as I kissed the tip of her nose. "Let's go get cleaned up and get you in bed. You need your rest."

"And so it begins," she giggled as I helped her up and into the bathroom.

My sweet girl didn't know the half of it.

**EPOV~February - About 10 weeks **

"Edward, what are you doing up so early?" my dad asked as he sat down next to me at the table, setting his mug of coffee down.

I held my own cup in my hands and stared at the steam that billowed out of it. "I couldn't sleep," I answered him with a shrug of my shoulders.

"Edward," Pop said in the tone of voice I knew so well. The one he used when one of us tried to not tell him something.

Taking a deep breath, I plowed ahead. I hadn't really talked to anyone about this yet, especially Bella, but I needed to. "For some reason I'm really nervous about today. I don't know why, but I am. Bella would be so upset if she knew how much."

He took a drink of his coffee and then looked at me, a soft smile on his face. "Son, there isn't anything wrong with being nervous. I'd be surprised if you weren't. You didn't get to experience any of this the first time around and Bella means a hell of a lot more to you than Lauren ever did."

I snorted at that because truer words had never been spoken. "Amen to that," I said, lifting my mug in my dad's direction. I sat back in my chair and ran my hands through my hair before leaning forward and resting my elbows on the table. "It's more than just that. Deep down I know that Bella will be okay, but I can't shake the thought of something happening to her or the baby," I admitted with a whisper.

Dad reached his hand out and covered mine with his and squeezed it until I looked up at him. "Edward," he said in a soft voice, "I know what happened to Bella before with Jane still haunts you from time to time, but this is completely different. She's going to be fine."

"I know that here," I said pointing to my head, "but here is a different story altogether," I finished as I laid my hand over my heart. "If anything happened to her...I almost lost her once, I wouldn't survive it a second time." I wasn't over-exaggerating either. Watching her in that hospital as she fought to come back to me wasn't anything I could live through again.

"Travis is an excellent and well-respected doctor. She is getting the best care possible. She's young and healthy, not to mention the strongest person I know. Besides, Bella is a Cullen now, we're a strong lot." he said with a chuckle.

"She is all that, and a whole lot more. Bella just wanted this so bad, I just want everything to be perfect for her," I said as I finished my coffee.

"Of course you do, because you love her and she is always most important to you. Have a little bit of faith. Don't make me sic Father O'Connor on you," he said as he stood up. "Love you. It will all be fine, you'll see. I'm betting on a boy this time," he teased with a wink.

Groaning I said, "Pop, not you, too. What is it with all of you and boys?"

"Did you ever think that maybe we just want another you?" came the amused voice of my wife as she softly walked into the kitchen. "Morning, Dad," she said as she passed my father, kissing his cheek before coming to stand beside me.

"Bella, you look wonderful this morning," Pop said as he carried his mug to the sink.

"Good luck with everything today, you two. I'll see you later, love you both," he said as he walked out of the room.

Bella slid her hands down my chest and rested her chin on my shoulder. "You okay?" she asked after she kissed my cheek and the side of my neck a few times.

I reached up and laid a hand on top of hers and nodded my head. I really was, for the most part anyway. "I'm just excited for today," I told her, not lying but not worrying her either.

"Me, too," Bella said as she moved around to sit on my lap. "I can't wait to hear the heartbeat." She reached for my hand and placed it on her stomach. "I know there is a baby in there, but hearing it will make it so real," she whispered.

I leaned my head down and kissed the top of her head. "Our little Ladybug. I can't wait to hear her," I said with a grin. The baby was a girl, I just had a feeling.

"Him," Bella responded back immediately.

"Well, we'll just have to agree to disagree then, won't we?" I teased and chuckled when she snorted.

She reached up and grabbed my head, pulling me down closer to her so I could kiss her, which I was more than happy to do. After obliging her, I pulled back and kissed the tip of her nose. "Let's go get ready so we can hear her."

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

"Edward, would you stop? You're making me nervous," Bella said as she placed her hand on my bouncing knee.

"Sorry, Angel," I said as I let out a long exhale. "I hate waiting."

"Noooo, really? I never would have guessed!" Bella said with a roll of her eyes.

"Smart ass," I muttered under my breath...with a smirk.

"Ass," she said cheekily.

"Bella, you can go on back now," Travis's receptionist said after a few more minutes had passed.

She stood up and held her hand out to me, "Come on, Daddy, let's not keep the good doctor waiting," to which I answered with an eye roll of my own.

The nurse showed us to the exam room and Bella got undressed and into one of those horrid gowns and hopped up on the table as we waited for Dr. Hughes. I had to admit, I was more relived than I could express that he was Bella's doctor. Good looks and my irrational instincts aside, the man was excellent at his job.

"Ah, Bella, Edward," Travis said pleasantly as he walked into the room. The man was one smooth son of a bitch, I had to say.

"Hey, Dr. Hughes," my wife said with the smallest hint of a blush on her cheeks. _Good Lord, here we go_, I thought to myself.

Travis held his hand out to me and I shook it. "How are you, Edward? Everything going well up at Lake George?" he asked as he began to look through Bella's chart. My fingers itched to look as well, but I had to keep reminding myself that he was the doctor in this case and I was just the patient's husband.

It wasn't easy.

I nodded my head at him when he looked up at me and said, "Just fine, thanks."

"Well, let's get going shall we? I'm sure you are both anxious to hear the heartbeat and then get out of here," Travis said as he sat down on the stool.

The nurse walked in and he began the exam, measuring her stomach, seeing how much she weighed and such. Parts I'd rather not think about, too, but I knew it all was necessary. "Looks good," he said as he finished up and held his hand out for the Doppler he would use to listen to the heartbeat.

"Let's see if we can find Baby Cullen shall we?" he said with a smile as he stood up and waited for the nurse to arrange Bella's gown and the sheet.

Bella reached out her hand to me and I took it quickly, weaving our fingers together. I picked up her hand and brushed my lips across her skin, taking a deep breath before Travis started. "Love you," I told her as I turned to face her.

Travis held the instrument in his hand and began moving it over her stomach. One moment there was nothing, but in the next, the room was filled with the unmistakable sound of a fast, tiny heartbeat. "Edward," Bella said in a quivering voice and when I looked at her, her chin was trembling as she tried to keep from crying.

"Oh, Angel," I said tenderly as I bent down and kissed her forehead.

"It's good and strong, you two. Everything sounds and looks so good. I'm very pleased and optimistic that things will continue to go well," Travis said as he let us listen to the heartbeat for a few more moments.

I'd never heard anything so amazing and miraculous in my life. A tiny baby was inside of Bella, one that would grow and become our child, a part of her and a part of me. I had no words to explain what that meant to me, how much she meant to me.

"Edward?" Bella called to me and I smiled down at her.

"I'm fine, just speechless at the moment," I said with a smirk.

"I've never heard anything so wonderful," she said quietly, the awe evident in her voice.

She had tears in her beautiful brown eyes, and though I knew they were happy ones, I wiped them off with my thumbs as I held her face in my hands. "That's our baby," I told her and kissed her softly.

I leaned my forehead against hers silently while we waited for Travis to finish writing down some notes. "Bella, Edward," he said, getting our attention once again. "Like I said, everything looks and sounds just like it's supposed to at this stage. Bella and the baby are both progressing just like they should. Have their been any pains, spotting, anything out of the ordinary?"

Laughing at that I looked from Bella to Travis before saying, "Well, it depends on whether you think eating a jar of olives while drinking a glass of pink lemonade is ordinary?"

"Really, Bella?" Travis asked with a grin and my girl could only huff and nod her head. The first time she asked me to stop by the market and get her olives and lemonade, I couldn't believe it. But, it was what she wanted so it's what she got. As cravings went, it could have been worse I supposed.

"Well, Edward, count yourself lucky. When my wife was pregnant she wanted pickles dipped in cheese whiz...it was gross," he said with a shudder.

Bella scrunched up her face adorably and said, "Eeww, well, now I don't feel so bad."

"Tell me about it," Dr. Hughes said as he stood up. "I'll see you in a month. Keep taking your vitamins, make sure you get plenty of rest and exercise, and no stress, Bella," he said as he looked at her.

"Edward, it was good to see you. I hope to see you next time," he said as he shook my hand and then walked out. Grudgingly, I admitted he wasn't that bad of a guy.

"Bella, I'll get your appointment set and you can pick up your reminder card on the way out," the nurse said and then left.

I helped Bella sit up so she could change back into her clothes and after picking up her appointment card, we were on our way.

"Edward, can we stop and get a lemonade?" she asked sweetly as we drove off.

"Anything for you, baby, anything at all."

**BPOV~ Mid-March, about 18 weeks **

"Mama, where's my backpack?" Masen asked in a quick breath as he ran into the kitchen.

"Buddy, I'm not sure. Did you check by the front door or by the table where we did our homework last night?" I asked as I finished making scrambled eggs for breakfast.

He huffed and ran his hand through his hair and I had to hide my smile because he looked so damn much like Edward when he did that. "Yes, I did," he said in a tone of voice that let me know he probably hadn't looked there at all. Little man couldn't fool me.

I turned around, standing on my tiptoes, and went to reach up into the cabinet to pull a stack of plates down when I heard a throat clear behind me. "Bella, what do you think you are doing?" Edward asked as I lowered my arms and put my feet back on the ground again. Sometimes it really sucked to be short!

I blew out a frustrated breath and narrowed my eyes at my extremely gorgeous but even more overprotective husband. "Edward, I'm quite sure that when Travis told me to be careful, he didn't mean I couldn't get dishes out of the cabinet. Goodness!" I said exasperatedly at him.

Edward just stared at me and waited for the inevitable. "Fine. Edward, can you get the plates down for me so we can eat breakfast, please?" I finished in a sickly sweet voice.

He moved past me and grabbed the plates I'd started to get a few moments ago and set them down on the counter beside the platter of eggs. He bent down and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and said, "You're more than welcome, Angel."

I harrumphed at him and then turned to my son who was growing quite impatient from the looks of the scowl on his face. "Masen, you can go look for your backpack by yourself," I told him as I began to fix everyone's plates for breakfast.

"But, Mama," he started to whine and I closed my eyes and took a deep breath so I wouldn't snap at him.

This morning was not a good time for any of them to try my patience. I felt fat, I had to pee all the damn time, and this morning when I was brushing my teeth I made the mistake of looking up into the mirror and I swore I saw a pimple on my forehead! My back hurt constantly and I felt like I could burst into tears at the drop of a hat.

All normal side effects of being pregnant I knew, but knowing it didn't make it any easier to live with.

"Mommy," Maddie said as she ran into the kitchen...wearing a top I had specifically told her last night she couldn't wear. It was a thin tank top and was something to wear in the middle of summer, not the end of March when it was still cool enough to need a jacket.

I laid the spatula down that I'd had in my hand and looked at both of my children. Oohh, I loved them each madly, but there were days they made me want to pull my hair out. Apparently today was one of those days.

"Look, you two," I said in my stern voice, the one which conveyed I meant business. "Masen, you know perfectly well that your backpack is wherever you left it last. Go check by the front door or by the table. The thing doesn't have legs and it can't get up and move by itself, so just think about the last place you had it and start there," I told him with a pointed look.

I didn't know what it was about the male species but they always asked where something was before even bothering to look first. He stomped off in search of his wayward backpack so then I turned to my daughter, who was trying to win me over with the ever-famous Cullen pout.

"No way, little missy. You can put that pout away right this second. Maddie, I told you last night you couldn't wear that shirt today so march right back upstairs and change...now," I finished with a raised eyebrow.

"But, Mommy," she whined like her brother had and I shook my head at her.

"Now, Maddie," I said leaving no room for her to misunderstand.

She marched off exactly like Masen had and I let out a sigh and turned to glare at my husband when I heard him chuckle from the breakfast table.

I picked up his plate, since he was ready to eat and slammed it down in front of him. "Thanks for the help, Edward," I snapped at him.

I heard him sigh when I turned around to grab the kids' plates and I squeezed my eyes shut and blew out a long breath in the hopes it would relieve some of the tension I felt building up. I knew I was being a little...well a lot...irrational, but I couldn't help it.

Out of whack hormones really sucked.

The kids raced back into the kitchen, with a backpack and changed shirt just like they were supposed to.

I sat down at my place and it wasn't a minute later that I felt Edward's hand as he reached under the table and held mine, giving it a squeeze. When I looked up at him, he gave me a sweet smile and I tried to give him one right back.

I sniffed and took a deep breath to keep myself from crying. I was normally such an even-tempered person that the ups and downs were really beginning to take their toll on me. I loved being pregnant, I really did. So far I'd been really lucky with the morning sickness, or mostly lack thereof. With the exception of the occasional upset stomach and brief periods of nausea, I'd had it pretty easy so far...or at least I'd been told numerous times by Esme, Diane, Sue, and Charlotte. I wasn't counting my lucky stars just yet though, it would be just my luck to be the only pregnant woman that didn't glow at all the entire time she was pregnant.

"Okay, you two, go brush your teeth so we can get a move on," Edward said once we had all finished eating breakfast.

I gasped because normally I took them to school but Edward was already shaking his head at me when I turned to look at him. "Bella, let me take them this morning. You just stay home and relax," he said and then raised his eyebrows at me when he saw I was about to argue with him. "Really, why don't you just go back up to bed and get comfortable with a book…maybe even the baby book and start making a list of names?"

I huffed, because I hated feeling like I couldn't take care of things, but today for some reason my moods were all over the place and crawling back into bed sounded heavenly. I nodded at him and then hung my head.

"Hey now," Edward said softly and lifted my chin up with his fingers. "Baby, you're entitled to have an off day every now and then. Stop beating yourself up about it and enjoy a quiet day. You deserve it and I know Ladybug will, too."

I snorted because he and Maddie were still so convinced the baby was a girl. Masen had other ideas. To say they were excited about the baby would be the biggest understatement ever. There had been no agreement at all amongst them or Edward about what they wanted the baby to be. Maddie was adamant she wanted a sister and Masen hadn't wavered at all about wanting a brother. It did take a few heavy conversations with Maddie before she was convinced that just because Edward and I were going to have a baby, it didn't mean we would love her any less.

I heard the kids come running down the stairs and knew it was time for them to leave so I stood up. "Edward, our son isn't going to appreciate being called Ladybug," I told him as I turned to face him.

Edward slid his hand around to the front of my stomach and lifted my shirt up. "Ladybug, you don't listen to a word your mama says," he said softly as he bent down and kissed the bare skin before he lowered my shirt. "Bella, you're going to give our daughter a complex if you keep referring to her as a boy if you don't watch it," he smirked as he stood up and kissed my cheek.

"Whatever, Edward. I don't know why you're so convinced this baby is a girl," I teased back and heard Maddie grunt as she walked up to us.

"That's because it is a girl baby, Mommy," Maddie said as she patted my tummy. "I told you this a long time ago. You'll see," she said simply and walked off to sit and wait on the couch.

After kissing everyone goodbye I took a deep breath and heard…nothing. Rufus padded up next to me and I bent down to rub him on the top of his head. "Well, big guy, it looks like it's just you and me for the rest of the day. Let's hope I don't lose it with you, too."

I grabbed a bottle of water and made my way up the stairs, thinking about what Edward had said earlier. I knew that the way I was feeling was due to hormones; nothing else. The baby was healthy and so was I. We hadn't had any complications at all and Travis was very optimistic that it would remain that way until the end of my pregnancy. The entire family was beside themselves with happiness over the impending arrival of the newest Cullen and Edward sported a proud smirk every day. All in all I was lucky and I couldn't be happier.

The baby's room was going to be across the hall from ours and I stopped and looked inside it before I continued to our room. We had moved all the furniture, well, Edward, Emmett, and Peter had done it one weekend Rose and Em came to visit, into the garage outside because the other guest room was already furnished. We hadn't started looking for baby furniture yet, but I knew we would need to start soon. I knew a weekend long shopping trip was in store for me but instead of dreading it, I couldn't wait to share it with Esme, Sue, Ali, Rose, and the others. Edward had said he wanted to share everything with me, but I'm not sure that extended to days worth of shopping either!

"I'm getting so excited to see you, little one," I said softly as I laid my hands across my stomach.

With one last glance into the room and a smile as I pictured it filled with furniture and stuffed animals…and of course the baby, I went to our room. I did exactly what Edward suggested and crawled into bed and wrapped myself in the blankets before I picked up the book of baby names. For some reason I found myself looking at the girls' names first and I snorted as I thought about Edward and Maddie. I knew Edward was just teasing with me, that he would be happy with whatever we were having…and thank goodness it was only one baby! At that first appointment with Edward when we heard the heartbeat for the first time, I couldn't even begin to explain how relieved I was that it was only one baby. I wanted to have plenty of babies with Edward, just one at a time. Besides, Maddie and Masen were the Wonder Twins and I kind of liked the fact that so far, they were the only ones.

I felt my eyes get heavy after looking through pages and pages of names so I closed my eyes. What felt like only a few moments later I woke up and after a quick glance at the clock realized I'd been asleep for almost two hours. I hadn't even asked Edward earlier if he was coming home for lunch today but I decided I'd get up and take a short shower and make him something to eat, just in case.

As I stood up, I felt a flutter in my stomach. It lasted barely longer than a second and I figured it was just from getting out of bed so quickly so I shook my head and went into the bathroom. I stepped carefully into the shower, still a bit leery of my footing. Slipping that one time did a number on me. I hurried through my shower, wanting to get done and out as fast as I could.

Once I was done, I grabbed my towel and wrapped it around me, tucking it in underneath my arms, and stepped carefully out and onto the bath mat. I breathed a small breath of relief when I had my feet firmly beneath me. My biggest worry was slipping and falling accidentally and hurting the baby somehow. I was almost irrational about it, it was the one thing that I tended to be a bit obsessive about, but I couldn't help it.

I reached for another towel and began to dry my hair when I felt that fluttery feeling again, only this time it was a bit more pronounced. I dropped the towel I'd been using to dry my hair on the floor when I realized what it was I was feeling.

"Oh my God," I whispered out loud and picked my head up to stare at my reflection in the mirror. My eyes immediately filled with tears and I smiled so big that if anyone had been in the room and saw me, they would think I'd gone mad.

"Hello, my precious one," I said in a soft voice filled with awe. "I wish your daddy was here to meet you," I said and giggled when I felt the flutter again. "Yeah, I know, I'd be excited to see him if I were you, too."

I'd known there was a baby growing inside of me, I'd heard the heartbeat, seen the ultrasound pictures every day that were proudly displayed on the front of the refrigerator, but feeling the baby move was something entirely different altogether.

I let the towel I had wrapped around my body fall to the floor and turned sideways in the mirror to look at myself. All the insecure thoughts I'd had just this morning about feeling fat and awkward melted away. Now as I looked at my reflection, all I saw was the miracle of life…and the result of mine and Edward's love. All that other stuff, was just…stuff. Swollen ankles, backaches, clothes that didn't fit, it was just a part of bringing this little one into the world so we could love it for the rest of our lives.

I closed my eyes and felt the warm tears fall down my face. I laid my hands across my stomach and said a prayer of thanks for all that I'd been blessed with. Edward, Maddie, Masen, and our little one most of all.

"Bella?" Edward said softly from the doorway of the bathroom and turned around and smiled at him.

"Are you okay, why are you crying?" he asked as he stepped closer to me.

I reached out and grabbed his hand and placed it on top of mine on my stomach and said, "I felt the baby move."

"Oh, Bella," he whispered and fell to his knees in front of me. He kissed my stomach over and over again, whispering so quietly I couldn't hear what he was saying. He finally looked up at me and his green eyes were shiny with his tears.

Edward reached for my left hand and kissed my wedding ring and then said, "I never believed my life would be so full, that I would be so blessed. Thank you for all you've given me."

"Edward," I said with a sigh as he pressed his forehead against my stomach. I ran my fingers through his hair for a few moments before he stood up and reached behind him, grabbing my robe and sliding my arms inside it. He reached down without saying a word and picked me up, cradling me against his chest and walked us to our bed. He set me down in the middle of it and then kicked off his shoes and took off his tie before he climbed into the bed and laid behind me. He pulled me tight against him and he started to whisper in my ear.

"What did it feel like?" he asked first and I smiled. I picked up his arm and then rolled over so I could look at him. I needed to see his face, to watch his expressions so he could share this with me. It would be a while yet before he could feel the baby move, which in a weird way made me feel really sad. I wanted to share everything about this with him.

"Well, at first I didn't know what it was because it was so quick and I had just gotten out of bed. When I got out of the shower, I felt it again and knew immediately what it was. It feels like bubbles inside my stomach...or a butterfly," I told him quietly and reached out to run my fingers down his face and across his jaw.

"Ladybug," he said with a wink and reached down and untied my robe and pushed it aside so he could lay his hand over my stomach. "I can't wait to feel her. I know she's in there, but feeling her has to be different," he said and I nodded my head because I had just thought the same thing.

"It's weird, but I feel bad you can't feel it yet," I told him and leaned forward so I could kiss him.

"You're so cute," he chuckled at me and pulled me close to him.

**EPOV~ Almost 5 months along**

"Bella!" I called as I walked in the house. I set my briefcase down on the island in the kitchen and grabbed an apple out of the bowl beside my briefcase before going in search of my wife. I knew Maddie and Masen were with Wyatt and Emily at their house so I hoped Bella had taken advantage of the quiet time. She'd been so lucky, hell, we'd been lucky, with everything so far. Health wise the baby was fine, progressing just as she should. I was absolutely convinced the baby was a little girl...another ladybug to wrap me thoroughly around her finger. I just couldn't get the picture of a little girl with Bella's gorgeous brown hair and my green eyes out of my head. Like Bella, I didn't really care one way or the other as long as both baby and Mama were healthy. Nothing was more important than that.

Speaking of Mama..."Bella!" I called again as I went up the stairs when I didn't hear her downstairs anywhere. I got to the top of the stairs and turned left toward our room and the room Bella was going to make the baby's nursery. It was actually my favorite of the bedrooms because it had a wall of windows that looked out over the lake and the view was spectacular, but it was too small to make it the master bedroom. Maddie and Masen had chosen rooms at the other end of the hall, probably knowing that they wanted to be as far away from ours as possible! Even after making the room the nursery, there was still one more room that we were currently using as the guest room. If I had my way, it wouldn't stay that way for too long.

I would never forget the day Bella had her surgery and Travis had told us the prognosis looked good. I sure as hell would never forget the day Tanya told us there was no reason we couldn't have a baby. It was definitely in the top of my favorite things I've ever been told, right behind the kids saying Daddy for the first time, Bella telling me she was pregnant...and of course Bella saying she'd marry me. I couldn't lie and say I hadn't been worried we might not get good news, but I had faith that things would work out and they did. My girl was too special of a person to not be able to share that with a child of her own. I knew beyond everything that she loved Maddie and Masen as if she had given birth to them, but the undeniable fact was she hadn't, and it was something I had wanted very much for her. I'd seen plenty of women in my line of work and though I didn't intimately know what it felt like to carry a baby and give birth, intellectually I understood. I wanted that for Bella.

It wasn't that I thought she would love our baby more than she loved Maddie and Masen. It wouldn't ever be more or less, but equal, because that was just the kind of woman Bella was. I had to imagine that the tendency would be there for other women in her same circumstance, but my wife had proven time and again that she wasn't like anyone else, nor would I ever want her to be.

I wanted it for myself, too, of course, but it was mostly for her. I wasn't lying when I told her before about missing out on things with Lauren and the twins. She'd done everything she could to keep all those special moments away from me.

Lauren surely was a supreme bitch and when I thought about how foolish I'd been all those years ago, it made me cringe. Of course, without Lauren there would be no Maddie and Masen and that thought was almost enough to bring me to my knees. Staring at my beautiful wife as she slept in the rocking chair of our as of yet unknown gender baby's room was enough to keep me focused on the here and now.

The sun shone into the room, falling across her body as if there was a spotlight shining down on her and she looked so beautiful she took my breath away. Her hands were laid across her growing baby bump and she had on a pair of loose shorts and one of my old baseball t-shirts. As I leaned against the doorway and stared at her, I seriously thought I could stand there for hours and just watch her.

Creepy and stalkerish...perhaps...but it was the fucking truth.

Nothing in the world brought me as much pleasure as just looking at Bella. Well, that wasn't exactly the whole truth, but I sure enjoyed looking at my wife.

"Why do I get the feeling that you still do that a lot?" Bella asked. Her eyes were still closed but she sported an all-knowing grin.

"Hmph," I grunted and smirked at her when she opened one eye to look at me.

I pushed off the doorway and walked toward her. When I stood next to her, she opened both of her eyes and looked up at me. Her brown eyes were as clear and as bright as I'd ever seen them and I smiled down at her.

"Have a good nap?" I asked softly as I reached down and ran the back of my fingers down the side of her face.

Bella nodded at me and reached up to grab my hand with hers and pulled it toward her mouth. She placed a few soft, wet kisses along my palm and the inside of my wrist. I stepped around the chair to the front and held my other hand out to her. When she put her hands in mine, I pulled her up and then sat down in her place, setting her on my lap. Bella curled up against my chest and laid her hand on my chest over my heart. Her heart, since she had owned it since the very first time I saw her.

Bella sighed softly and I chuckled before lowering my head so I could place a few kisses on the top of her head. "Did you have a good day today?" I asked against her hair.

"Mmmhmm," she answered back, sounding extraordinarily relaxed which she needed.

Once Bella got past the first trimester and Travis had adamantly assured her that everything looked great and the baby was healthy and there weren't any complications, Bella's entire persona changed instantaneously. Not that she had been difficult, because that wasn't Bella at all, but she was nervous and worried incessantly. I remembered the time she slipped in the bathroom as she got out of the shower. I was brushing my teeth and she had stepped over the edge of the tub and had lost her footing and had started to fall. Of course I had her safely in my arms before anything happened, but it had shaken her up something terrible. No matter how much I tried to convince her that everything was okay, she wouldn't believe me until we saw the back-up obstetrician the next day. With Bella's high risk status, Travis and Tanya both insisted that we had a local doctor to go to...just in case of an emergency. The closest hospital was in Glen Falls which was about twenty minutes away. Dr. Lennox was a very well-respected doctor and she and Travis had consulted so she was well aware of Bella's medical history. After that little mishap, Bella made me stay in the bathroom with her when she wanted to shower and more often than not, I would shower with her…water conservation and all.

I ran my fingers through her silky hair and enjoyed holding her close. I bent down and kissed her temple and then nuzzled my nose against her cheek for a few moments before I said, "I'm so excited about the ultrasound tomorrow."

"Ready to meet your son, huh?" she teased and I snorted at her.

"You'll owe me a hell of an apology when I'm right, Mrs. Cullen," I answered back before pressing my lips against hers. I flicked my tongue at her lips a bit before she opened her mouth and allowed my tongue entrance. Languidly I swirled my tongue with hers, circling and dipping over and over until all I could do was moan against her lips.

"Bella," I said with a sigh as I pulled back.

She shifted her body against mine and I let out another contented sigh when I felt her stomach against mine. Her baby bump made it so it was getting more and more difficult to sleep facing her, not that we usually slept that way, but we did usually start out facing each other so we could talk. After that I would lay on my back and Bella would curl up against me with her head on my chest or I would lay behind her, holding her close to me. I loved that position, now especially, because every night I would lay my hands over her belly in the hopes of feeling the baby move. Bella could already feel it move from time to time and I knew that any time now I would be able to feel it as well. I couldn't fucking wait.

"This is nice," Bella said somewhat dreamily as I rocked us in the chair and she ran her fingers through my hair.

I squeezed my arms around her and ran my hands up and down her back. "It sure as hell is," I agreed.

With Maddie and Masen and their schedules, moments of complete quiet were surely hard to come by.

"I love you, Edward," Bella said and I could tell she was enjoying being quiet as much as I was.

"Always and forever, Angel," I whispered and continued to rock the two of us knowing that by this time tomorrow, we would hopefully know whether the newest Cullen was a boy or a girl.

"Mama, come on!" Masen huffed as he bounced up and down on the balls of his feet as he stood in the elevator.

Bella grunted at him and though she tried not to be annoyed with our son, she failed miserably. "Mase, you do realize it takes me longer to move around nowadays than it used to, don't you?" she asked as the elevator shut and we headed up to the floor where the ultrasound would be done.

"Pshh," he said as he rolled his eyes at her.

Bella had been convinced for a few weeks now that she looked as big as a whale - her words not mine - which the three of us argued against vehemently. Yes, she had a baby bump, but she was, without a doubt, the sexiest, most beautiful pregnant woman that ever lived...in my totally biased and not so humble opinion.

Maddie reached out and patted Bella's tummy gently and said, "Mommy, Masen just wants to meet our sister." She giggled when both Bella and Masen groaned and shook their heads at her.

"You said it, Princess," I said with a wink in her direction. As the elevator stopped and the doors opened, I looked at the three of them and said, "Okay everyone, let's go see Ladybug."

We walked down the hall and found the room where they would be performing the ultrasound. I looked at Maddie and Masen and reminded them, again, "Now you two remember that Mommy has to change her clothes and they need to get the machine set up before anything will happen. Not only that, remember that there is a chance we won't find out what the baby is today, too."

"Kay, Daddy," they each answered and I silently said a quick prayer that our little bundle would cooperate...for all our sakes.

"Edward, Bella," a technician said as she walked up to us. "My name is Janet and I'll be performing your ultrasound today." Janet smiled at us and then turned to Maddie and Masen. "And you must be big brother and big sister," she said and laughed when they nodded their heads enthusiastically.

"Yes, ma'am," Masen said, standing up straight.

"Well, why don't your mom and I go inside and get situated and then I'll come get you three and we'll take a peek at your brother or sister."

"Sister," Maddie said happily.

"Brother," Masen answered even louder.

"Dr. Cullen, any thoughts?" Janet asked with a smirk.

I looked at Bella, who was biting her lip and rubbed her stomach with her hand. "I don't care either way. I'm already happier than anyone has a right to be."

She nodded her head at me before she turned to Bella. "Well, then, let's get you prepped so we can meet the newest Baby Cullen."

Finally after what seemed like forever as I nervously bounced my leg up and down, Janet called the three of us in the room.

I rushed to Bella's side and kissed her forehead before I grabbed her hand in mine. I just needed to touch her, feel her skin against mine. Knowing that our lives were about to be irrevocably changed, suddenly threatened to overwhelm me.

Never being able to experience this with Maddie and Masen made this incredibly special, and a bit bittersweet if I was being truly honest. It was hard sometimes to keep myself from feeling guilty about enjoying all the firsts I got to experience with Bella. I was sad at the fact I'd missed out on them with the twins, but extremely grateful to do so now.

"You doing all right?" I asked her as I squeezed her hand in mine.

She giggled at me and I heard Janet snicker as she reached for the gel to put on Bella's stomach. "Maddie, Masen, do either of you have any questions before we get started?" she asked, and I was so impressed and grateful for inclusion of the kids in what she was doing.

Bella and I had set out from the very beginning of her pregnancy to include them as much as we could in things as they progressed. We didn't want them to feel the least bit left out and we felt it was important that they feel like they were as much a part of what was going on as the baby.

Janet had set two stools beside me for them to sit on and they looked at me before Masen asked, "Is that where we'll see the baby?" he asked as he pointed to the ultrasound machine.

She nodded at him and said, "Yes. Hopefully we'll get a good picture and be able to tell whether you two are getting a new brother or sister."

"It won't hurt the baby will it?" Maddie asked and I couldn't help but smile at my sweet little girl.

Janet shook her head and said, "No, sweetie. We're just taking a picture. It's a bit different from what you're used to, but that's all I'm doing today."

She waited to see if the kids had any more questions and when they didn't ask anything else she got up and turned the lights down and scooted her stool closer to Bella. She moved the sheet out of the way and folded it carefully so that all that was exposed was her stomach and she smiled as she looked at the kids and in a conspiratorial whisper said, "Want to watch Mommy jump?"

The kids giggled and Janet looked at my wife who tried to look displeased, but wasn't doing a very good job. "Sorry, Bella," she said as she squeezed the cold gel on her skin and Bella did indeed jump...and squeak...much the the delight of our kids.

"Edward," Bella warned when she saw the corners of my lips twitch and I grinned at her.

"Can't help it, Angel, that was funny."

She grunted and then looked at the three of us in turn. "I won't forget this," she promised and we all just smiled at her.

Janet picked up the wand and almost instantly we all stopped laughing and focused on the screen next to her. As soon as she had the dials correct, there our baby was in all its glory.

"Wow," Maddie and Masen whispered in unison as Janet held the wand still and took a picture.

"Do you two want to come closer and get a better look?" she asked and before she'd barely gotten the words out, they had climbed off the stools and scurried over to her.

"Do you see right here?" she asked as she pointed to the middle of the screen. "Right there is your little brother or sister. You can see the arms and legs, and right there, is its little heart beating," she said patiently.

I heard Bella sniffle and I tore my gaze away from the screen to look at her. "What?" I asked.

"They're just so cute and sweet," she whispered. I looked up and the two of them were still totally enthralled with the screen so I bent my head down and kissed her quickly on the lips.

"That they are, but they're just like their mama," I told her. Cheesy...yes, but true nonetheless.

"Smooth, Edward," she grinned at me and all I could do was nod.

"Okay, you two go back by your dad and let's take a few more pictures and then we'll see if we can tell if it's a boy or a girl," Janet told them and they hurried back to their seats.

"Daddy, that was so cool!" Masen exclaimed, echoed by his sister.

"Well, we're not done yet," I told them each with a smile.

Janet typed in some information and then moved the wand again, taking measurements and recording them. Once that was done, she stopped again. "Maddie, Masen, and Bella you, too, as this is your first time for this, did you know that right now the baby is about as long as a banana and weighs about one pound?"

"It's so small," Maddie whispered, her eyes glued to the screen.

"It is," I told her. "But, from here on out, the baby will grow really fast. Mommy's done such a good job already," I said as I turned and looked at Bella and gave her a wink.

Janet typed in a few more things and then faced the four of us. "Is everyone ready to see if we can tell what Baby Cullen is?" she asked and everyone laughed when I gave an enthusiastic 'yes'.

I reached for Bella's hand and again, and lifted it to my lips and kissed the back of it. "I love you so much, Bella," I whispered to her.

Her eyes filled with tears and I kissed her forehead before turning to Janet. "Let's do this," I told her, anxious as hell to finally find out.

"Let's," she said with a chuckle and began to move the wand around again.

"Daddy, I can't tell anything," Masen said beside me and I chuckled at him.

"Well, little man, Janet is trying to take a good picture so we can see," I told him.

"Ah, and there we have it," Janet said and gave us all a big smile.

"Really, you can tell?" Bella asked in a whisper.

"Yep, we have a good, clear picture. Little Baby Cullen sure likes getting their picture taken," she said with a chuckle. "Is everyone ready?" she asked, and each and every one of us nodded our heads. I pulled Bella's hand up to my chest and then wrapped my arm around Maddie and Masen together.

"Everyone, meet baby girl Cullen," she said softly and we all sighed at the same time.

"Ladybug," Masen said sweetly without even a hint of disappointment that it wasn't the brother he'd hoped for. My boy, he was one in a million.

"A girl," Bella whispered and I looked at her with tears in my eyes.

"A girl," I told her and because I'm me..."And you owe me and Mad an apology, Mrs. Cullen."

"Daddy," Maddie said, and then giggled. "A sister!" she squealed and then clapped her hands, making us all laugh.

"Mase, you okay, little man?" Bella asked as Janet began to wipe the excess gel off Bella's stomach.

He nodded and looked at her. "Yep. That just means the next one will be a boy."

I couldn't help but laugh at that and then bent my head down and swept my lips across Bella's. "Thank you, Angel. I'm so damn happy. Thank you, thank you, thank you."

"Oh, Edward," Bella said with a sigh. "I love you so much."

"Back at ya, baby...both baby's," I smiled and then bent over to kiss her tummy before Janet lowered the sheet. "Ladybug, I can't wait to see you."

"Well until you can meet her in person, let me get you some pictures to take home and give the rest of your family," Janet said as she stood up. "Congratulations to all of you. You have a beautiful family," she said before she left to get some copies made.

We heard a ruckus in the hallway and then unmistakable voice of my idiot brother. "Ed, man, where are ya?" he bellowed. I huffed and then kissed Bella on the cheek before going to open the door. Unsurprisingly, our entire family crowded around in the hallway and with an exaggerated sigh, I opened the door and stood back so they could all come in.

"Well, what is it?" Emmett asked as he pushed his way in front of everyone.

Rose pinched his arm and scowled at him. "Emmett, knock it off and wait a damn minute. Jeeze," she huffed and then turned to look at Bella and me. "Well, what is it?" she asked with a snicker.

"Bella, dear, everything is okay?" Mama asked as she shooed me out of the way to stand next to my wife.

"Edward, you look extraordinarily pleased," my dad said as he slapped my shoulder.

I wrapped my arm around him and kissed the side of his head. "Pop, you have no fucking idea," I said with a grin.

"Hey, brother mine," Ali said as she slid in beside me and wrapped her arm around me. "Hey Aunt Ali," I said as I bent down and kissed her cheek.

"God, I love the way that sounds," she said as she laid her head on my shoulder.

"Edward, Bella, come on! You guys are killing us here," Jasper whined as he stepped up beside Alice. He reached around and slapped me on the back.

"Yeah, hurry the hell up. We've got money riding on this you know," Seth said and then cringed when Tanya slapped him on the back of the head.

"I don't know, baby, I think we should make them sweat. What do you think?" I asked Bella with a wicked smirk.

"Edward Anthony Cullen, if you don't tell me what my newest grandchild is, I swear you'll be sorry," Mama said as she leveled a stare at me.

"Nana! Daddy is too old to be in trouble," my son said.

"Masen Samuel, remember this...children are never too old to be in trouble with their mamas," she warned with a shake of her finger.

"Edward, we'd better tell them before they turn on us," Bella said with a giggle.

"Seth, what did you bet on, boy or girl?" I asked, hoping it was a boy. Really, betting on what we were going to have! Too bad, I'd bet on girl. I'd known it all along.

"Boy," he said as he bounced up and down on his feet, looking exactly like the kids instead of a twenty-five year-old man.

"You lose," I told him without preamble and waited for everyone to react.

Suddenly we were flooded with hugs and kisses and slaps on the back mixed with lots of congratulation wishes.

"Well, it certainly looks like everyone liked the news," Janet said as she entered the room carrying a stack of pictures.

"Are those what I think they are?" Mama asked as she began to move toward her, only to be stopped by my dad.

"Es, dear, let the woman give them to Edward and Bella first. I'm sure we can get copies if there aren't enough. They are, after all, the parents. We're just Nana and Papa," he said as he gave her a kiss on her cheek.

"But, Car, I want one," she pouted and I had to laugh at my mother.

"Mama, I promise you can have at least one picture of Ladybug."

"Here you go, Dr. Cullen, and I made plenty when I saw the crowd in the hallway," she said as she handed me the stack.

"Help," Bella cried pitifully, and I looked at her.

"Oh, baby, I'm so sorry," I said and tried not to laugh. She was situated on the exam table just so, and it made it hard for her to sit up. With all the excitement of everyone in the room, she got lost in the shuffle.

"Mommy, are you okay?" Masen asked as he rushed to her side and pulled on her hand and helped her up as I slid my hand behind her back and sat her up straight.

"Sorry, Mama," I whispered in her ear.

She swatted at my chest and then smiled at me. " I see how it is, little Ladybug has already replaced me."

"Not a fucking chance. You're always number one," I told her and kissed her temple.

"Hand me my picture, Edward," Mama demanded with her hand out and I passed them around to everyone.

It was quiet for a few seconds as they all looked at the picture, including Bella and me. "I love her so much. She's so beautiful," Bella whispered as she ran her fingers over the film.

"Just like her mother," I told her.

"Rosie, I want one," Emmett said, causing the whole room to erupt in laughter.

Lord help us all, that child most of all.

**BPOV~End of May about 26 weeks pregnant **

"Ugh," I moaned quietly, hoping I didn't wake Edward up. We'd gotten a late start leaving Lake George last night and by the time everyone had rubbed my belly and we had visited for a bit, it was way past my bedtime. Since it was toward the end of May, Maddie and Masen had spent the weekend with Carlisle and Esme and we would see them tomorrow before my appointment. School was almost over and we were in the fun part of the end of the year so Edward and I didn't really mind them missing a day of school.

I ran my hands over my growing baby bump and smiled as I remembered how excited everyone was to see us last night. It had been awhile since we'd announced our news to the family, but it sure seemed like none of the excitement had abated in the slightest. I knew Edward's hadn't either. If anything, it only continued to grow more and more with each passing day. Even though I was beginning to feel really uncomfortable, Edward kept insisting I was beautiful…even when I would make him go to the market to get me olives and pink lemonade, I was feeling really good and even I had to admit I made a pretty damn cute mama-to-be.

It was a good thing that I felt so good because Edward attacked me anytime he could get his hands on me…and vice versa. Ever since Travis had told us awhile ago at an appointment that everything looked really good and we'd passed the first trimester safely, it seemed like a switch had been flipped. My sex drive shot through the roof almost overnight and well Edward being turned on and ready to go had never been a problem, but it was even less so now. Damn, most of the time it would only take the slightest of touches and he was raring to go...again it wasn't like I ever complained either.

My boobs had filled out, much to Edward's supreme and attentive delight. I couldn't ever tell which he loved more, my boobs or the growing bump at my waist. He surely was an equal opportunity attention giver, no question about it. Case in point, not only was his head firmly planted on my chest in between my breasts, but his hand laid protectively over my stomach...and he'd been in this position when I'd woken up quite awhile ago. He hadn't moved an inch since.

Every time I tried to slide out from beneath him, he would just squeeze me tighter, but if I didn't get up and into a bathroom, I might give Edward a reason for his sex drive to come to a complete standstill.

"Edward, baby, I have to get up," I whispered as I ran my fingers down his back. The way his muscles bunched under my fingertips was almost enough to make me forget how badly I had to pee, but not quite.

"Mmph," Edward grunted against my chest and I couldn't help but smile.

"Seriously, you have to move...like now," I urged as the ...urge had grown to an almost unbearable level.

I poked him again, harder this time, until he finally picked his head up and sleepily looked at me. "Bella, what's wrong?" he asked immediately when he saw the look of discomfort on my face. His hands flew over my body, carefully touching to see what the problem was. That of course made me snort, which in my present state was not the smartest idea I'd ever had.

I rolled my eyes at him when his hands stopped and he looked at me, still really confused.

"Edward, I have to pee so badly that if you don't get off of me like in less than half a second, I swear to you on all that is holy, we won't have sex again until six weeks after I have this kid," I shrieked.

He rolled off immediately either because he could tell I really had to go or because he was afraid I was serious about my threat. I quickly made it to the bathroom, barely making it in time, and thanked the heavens above for small favors. I mean really, it was bad enough women had to endure all we did while pregnant, you would think that not making us have to pee all the damn time would have been the least someone upstairs could have done!

"Angel, are you okay?" Edward sweetly asked. Suddenly hearing his voice made me forget all about every uncomfortable moment I'd had thus far and would continue to have. All I wanted now was him. I hurried and washed my hands and brushed my teeth and then flung the door open. Edward's head whipped in my direction from where he sat on the edge of the bed and when he took in my heavy breathing and my dilated eyes, he flashed me a sexy as hell grin.

"Again? I'm not a machine you know," he smirked at me as he laid back on the bed on his elbows.

"Well, you better figure out a way to recharge your batteries or something because yes...again...now," I told him as I stared at him from the bathroom doorway.

He was so fucking sexy as he laid there and smirked at me. He never slept with a shirt on, a fact of which I was extremely thankful for, pants either for that matter. Just a pair of black boxer briefs which were now trying to contain his very prominent erection.

_Not a machine, my ass_ I thought to myself as I licked my lips.

My appointment with Travis wasn't until after lunch and Maddie and Masen would not be here for a few hours yet. I missed my kids something fierce and I surely planned on showing them just how much when they got here, but for now, I planned on seeing if I really could get Edward's batteries recharged...multiple times.

"Bella?" Edward asked with a raised eyebrow. "You plan on just staring at me all morning or do you want to do something about this?" He waved his hand over his crotch and I swore my mouth watered when I saw how hard he was.

"Oh, I plan on doing plenty, Dr. Cullen," I said in a husky whisper as I pulled my cami off and pushed my pajamas down my legs.

Needless to say, I found plenty of ways to recharge Edward's batteries and by the end was almost convinced that I could last until the end of the day without having my way with him again.

Almost.

A short while later as we sat at the island in the kitchen while Edward moaned and groaned about not being able to go my appointment today, I heard the elevator and knew the kids were about to come tearing through the door. Edward had promised Jasper and Emmett he would help move some furniture around for Alice's new bedroom, and since this appointment was just a checkup, I convinced him he needed to help. He'd gotten better about dealing with Travis and was actually almost friendly to him most of the time, thank goodness. There were still the occasional grunts and glares, but he behaved more often than not.

To make matters even worse, Rose and Alice, well Esme and Diane too, thought it was all hilarious, especially after Tanya told everyone of Edward's little rant after my surgery. Travis had never been anything but professional, but try telling my overprotective and ridiculously jealous husband that. Sure Dr. Dreamy could flirt like no one's business with his 'hi honeys and 'have a good day, darlins' but he was a happily married man. I was sure his wife had plenty to deal with, without adding me to the mix.

"Mommy!" my two terrors yelled as I opened the door to let them in. I hadn't seen them in a few days. Carlisle and Esme had come to spend a few days with us and brought Maddie and Masen back home with them on Friday after school. Since my appointment was on a Monday, we figured it would work out good to come in last night, go to my appointment today and then head home afterward. As things progressed with the pregnancy, keeping fingers crossed that there weren't any complications, we would have to make more frequent trips into town until closer to my due date, at which time we would just stay in the city.

"Hey, you two," I giggled as I bent down to kiss them each on the cheek as they wrapped their arms around my waist.

"Hi, baby," Masen said softly as he leaned down by my stomach and I couldn't help but smile at how sweet he was. He could be rotten as all get out sometimes, but moments like this made those few times he acted out, fade away into the background.

"Are you going to the doctor today?" Maddie asked me and I nodded my head at her.

"Yep, sure am, babygirl. You and Masen will go with Daddy to Uncle Jasper's house and we'll see you over there when we're done."

"But I want to come with you," Maddie pouted and I was torn about what to do. I hated telling her no, ever, but I wasn't sure she should come today or not.

However, my little princess knew exactly what she was doing when she pouted at me and when I rolled my eyes at her, she knew she'd won...again.

"Yeah!" She giggled as she clapped her hands and I turned to glower at Edward when I heard him chuckle from behind me.

He had stepped up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist and splayed his hands over my stomach. "Mama, you are such a sucker," he whispered in my ear and then kissed the side of my neck.

Edward had taken to calling me Mama from time to time since shortly after I told him I was pregnant. I couldn't say I minded a bit. It was kind of funny because poor Masen got so confused sometimes. He would get excited and call me Mommy and other times he would hear Edward call me Mama and he would follow right behind. I had to admit, I loved being Mommy, but hearing the word Mama did something to me. I couldn't quite explain what it was, but I knew what emotions it evoked in me. A sense of home, of belonging, of unconditional love. Maybe it was because Edward called Esme Mama, I didn't know for sure, all I knew was I loved it.

"Well, if you are coming with me to see Dr. Hughes, you better go find your iPod before we have to leave," I told her and swatted her gently on the butt as she ran off.

"Hmmm, Hughes. Nolan's last name is Hughes," she said absentmindedly as she ran off to her room.

Maddie and Nolan still kept in touch regularly through instant messaging. She was way too young for Facebook, so every night after homework was over, she was allowed thirty minutes to get on the laptop and talk to Nolan. It was the cutest thing ever, and I was actually really proud of her for making such an effort to stay in contact with him.

I turned to Edward and pulled his arms so he would wrap them around my waist. When I felt him hook his hands at the small of my back, I smiled up at him. "Have you ever seen Nolan's dad or Travis's wife?" I asked him, thinking it would be a huge coincidence if somehow Travis was Nolan's dad and Amanda's husband. A good coincidence I thought, but a coincidence just the same.

He shook his head at me and bent his head down and nuzzled his nose against my cheek. "I really hate that I'm not going with you today," he said as I felt his warm breath against my skin.

I lifted my arms and wrapped them around his back and laid my hands across his shoulder blades. "I know, sweetheart, but Jasper and Em really need your help, and this is just a checkup. You aren't missing anything," I told him as I stretched my neck because it just felt so damn good when he kissed me there.

"I want to share everything with you, Bella. Not to bring up a sore subject, but I missed all of this the first go round. I don't want to miss a moment this time, even if it's for something as simple as a checkup," he told me, his eyes burning with so much emotion.

I reached up and ran my fingers through his hair and pulled his head down to mine. I kissed him over and over again, just light kisses, but they were full of so much love and so much happiness, I was sure he could feel it. "If you want to come today, Edward, then come with me. I don't want to do any of this without you either," I told him as I played with the hair at the nape of his neck. "Jasper and Em will understand it if you beg off for today."

If he wanted to come with me, there was no way I was telling him he couldn't. This whole experience was just as much for him as it was for me and I wanted to share every moment with him, too. Big ones or small ones, they would all be firsts for the both of us.

Edward chuckled and stepped back, running his hands through his hair. "So, I guess you all will go to Jas and Ali's after you're done?" he asked and his voice was a bit tense, but not overly so. He really had a hard time letting me out of his sight, so I knew he was struggling with today, but I also knew he wouldn't say anything, so neither would I. He knew before we'd even gotten in last night that I was going to this appointment without him, so he'd had plenty of time to get used to the idea.

"Yes, Rose is meeting me at the office for the appointment and then we'll go from there to meet you guys. Everything will be just fine," I told him as I grabbed my purse and cell phone so I could head out.

"You'll be safe right, careful getting in and out of the cab and you'll call me as soon as you're done with Travis?" he asked and though I really wanted to roll my eyes at him, he was just too adorably overprotective that all I could do was smile at him.

I nodded my head and grabbed his hand, pulling him to the door with me. "Yes, Edward, I'll be careful. I know you worry, but try not to. Me and Ladybug are going to be just fine," I promised and ran my hand over my stomach.

"Love you," I said with a smile as he kissed me goodbye.

"You make sure Dr. Dreamy behaves himself," Edward warned, even though the corners of his mouth twitched as he tried not to smile at his totally unnecessary remark.

I blew him a kiss as we stepped on the elevator, chuckling to myself.

Dr. Dreamy was…well dreamy, but he wasn't Edward…not even close.

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

"About time you got here," Rose said as Maddie and I walked in the doors of the building where Travis had his office.

I turned toward the sound of her voice and laughed out loud at the sight in front of me. Every female member of my family: Rose, Ali, Esme, Diane, Sue, Heidi, and even Tanya were in the lobby and all had the same looks on their faces.

Mischievousness…with a hint of excitement.

I looked pointedly at Tanya who just shrugged her shoulders at me. "What do you want me to say, Bella? They all want to meet Dr. Dreamy," she chuckled and I shook my head when every single one of them nodded their heads in agreement.

"We can't all just go up there," I tried to stall, frantically trying to figure out how not to go up there with an entourage like I was Mariah Carey or something.

Rose snorted and her blue eyes glinted like they always did when she was up to something. "All taken care of; Tanya has worked it all out already. We're way ahead of you, Bell," she said as I looked at Tanya incredulously.

"Oh, come on, Bella!" she laughed as we all made our way to the elevator. "Even you have to admit he's something else to look at. Besides, we just wanted to be here for you because Edward is with the guys," she finished, not sounding the least bit sincere.

"Yes, Bella. You wouldn't want to upset my son, would you? Poor man thinking you're going to be all alone today," Esme snickered and I huffed at the whole lot of them.

"Babygirl," I said as I ran my hand down the back of Maddie's hair. "When it's your turn a long, long time from now, do me a favor and make sure you have a girl doctor. Makes things much easier," I finished in my best put-upon voice.

She looked up at me, totally confused but she said, "'Kay, Mommy."

The others laughed at my outburst and I could only imagine the shit I would get from Edward when he found out about this. As soon as I thought about that, I realized the others would get in even worse trouble. I had to be here, they didn't.

Oohh, I was really going to love it when this came back and bit them all on the ass. Every last one of them…yes, even Esme. Sue was the only one that didn't have to answer to anyone, but I had a feeling Seth would have plenty to say about his mother making a special trip to ogle a hot doctor.

We exited the elevator and I heard a voice that made me cringe just a little, no matter how much I loved her.

"Her appointment was today, I'm sure it is," came the unmistakable voice of Carmen Denali.

"Tanya," I groaned as she huffed behind me.

"Well, I couldn't not let her come," she said and I shook my head.

This just kept getting better and better.

"Ah, Mrs. Cullen," Travis's receptionist greeted us. She tried to hide her smirk as we approached the desk. She worked with the man every day, but I'm sure she'd never seen a small army in the office just to look at Dr. Hughes. But, who knew, maybe she had?

"Sorry," I mouthed to her and rolled my eyes at the actions of my family.

You'd think they'd never seen a good-looking guy or something the way they were all going on about seeing him.

I heard the door open from the back to the waiting room and I quickly looked around the office and noticed for the first time that it was empty.

"Tanya!" I hissed as I grabbed her arm. "Normally this office is full of people."

"Relax, Bella. It's no big deal. Travis just rearranged a few appointments so you'd be the only one here," she told me.

I was so embarrassed I could die and I could feel my cheeks warm and knew without looking they were beet red.

"This is mortifying," I said softly, but Rose heard me.

She started to say something but Travis walked out just at that moment, saving her for the time being. I was all for harmlessly teasing Edward, but this was pushing the boundaries of acceptable behavior.

"Bella, my favorite patient," he said with a wide smile as he walked toward me. I wanted to crawl in a hole and hide, but I knew I couldn't.

"Hey, Dr. Hughes," I told him, hoping he would just pretend his office wasn't full of a bunch of women that were only here to gawk.

"Bella, dear, don't you want to introduce us?" Carmen asked and I huffed when I heard the receptionist snicker behind her desk.

"Dr. Hughes, let me introduce you to everyone so they can leave and let you get to work," I said snarkily and turned to glare at the lot of them. I couldn't help but smile when I saw the awestruck looks on all their faces. Realizing that Travis wasn't going to make a big deal about it all, I decided to let it go as well. I mean the man was nice to look at.

"This is my best friend, Rose, my sister-in-law, Alice, my mother-in-law, Esme Cullen, my Aunt Diane," I said and took and exaggerated breath so I could finish. "This is Sue Clearwater, Heidi, you already know her," I said with a scowl as I pointed to Tanya, "and lastly, this is Tanya's mother, Carmen Denali."

He cleared his throat and then smiled at all of them, and I couldn't help but chuckle at the fact the tips of his ears were red. "It's really nice to meet all of you. I must say, Bella, you have a very beautiful family," he said smoothly.

They all swooned at him, every last one of them. Esme and Diane, too. I rolled my eyes at them all, wanting to get my checkup done so I could get back to Edward. "Well, they've taken up plenty of your time," I said pointedly, only to be interrupted by my daughter.

"Mommy, what about me?" she asked as she stared at Travis, much like the rest had been.

"Oh, and who might you be, pretty girl?" he asked as he bent over at the waist to look at her.

"Maddie. That's my mommy," she said sweetly as she pointed to me.

He stood up and looked at her, cocking his head to the side. "Do you play soccer?" he asked and she nodded her head. "You're Nolan's Maddie," he said with a smile and she looked back at him, confused. "Sorry, darlin'," he said and turned to me. "I'm Nolan's dad, Amanda's husband. I always thought you looked familiar, but I just couldn't place it," he said with a shake of his head. "I feel like an idiot for not recognizing you. I remember seeing Edward, and...the rest of you now," he said as he looked at my family.

"Well, I was usually on the sidelines helping Scott," I told him and he nodded and said, "Well, and I always got there late and had to leave early, so it's no wonder our paths didn't cross. Nolan will be mad at me tonight, pretty girl, that is for sure," he said as he tweaked the end of her nose.

"Let's get started, shall we?" Travis said as he looked at me and I nodded. "It was really nice to meet all of you," he said and then walked to the back.

My checkup was just fine, and he even let Maddie listen the heartbeat. She kept him busy with her never ending questions about the baby, me, and most especially, Nolan.

"He doesn't have a new best friend does he?" she asked, more than once.

"No, sweetie, you're still and will always be number one," he said as he finished up and stood up. "Bella, everything looks really good. You will have to start coming in more often, every two weeks, here before too long. Will that be a problem?" he asked and I shook my head.

"Not at all, and I promise no more visits from all the members of your Fan Club," I told him with a shake of my head.

He flashed me a smirk that my husband would be jealous of and said, "It's okay, Bella."

"I take it this isn't the first time?" I asked and the poor man hung his head and let out a long sigh. "Your wife must love that. Amanda must have the patience of a saint," I said with a giggle and he smiled again.

"She does. Trust me, I'm not the easiest guy to put up with. Besides, I'm sure you've had your fair share of women throwing themselves at Edward. I remember how the nurses used to talk about him, too,"

"Oh Lord," I said with a groan and proceeded to tell him about what happened when he first opened his practice.

He laughed when I finished. "I'll have to tell Amanda that; she'll feel better," he said and I pushed against his shoulder as we walked back out to the others.

Travis gave me a quick hug, and patted Maddie on the head. "It was great to see you two today. I'll be sure to let Nolan and Amanda know."

"Please tell them hello for us and tell Amanda that next time I'm in town, maybe we can get the kids together."

"Will do, have a nice day," he said and waved before going back to his office.

I reached down and grabbed Maddie's hand and then turned to look at the members of my family. "Well, since all of ours at the same place, how about we head to Jas and Ali's? I can't wait to see you all get out of this!" I said with a laugh.

"Totally worth it," Rose snickered as she stepped beside me on the elevator. "That is one fine-looking man."

"Rose, my dear, I have to agree with you," my mother-in-law agreed and I rolled my eyes.

"We'll see," I told them all.

**EPOV **

"Hey, Jasper, where did you say Ali was?" I asked as we moved the monstrous dresser in their room to make room for the even more monstrous dresser that was being delivered in a few hours.

He grunted as we maneuvered the awkward piece of furniture out the door and into the guest bedroom. Once we had carefully set it down, he stood up straight and stretched his back for a minute before he looked at me. "I'm pretty sure she said she was going to meet Bella at the doctor's office."

"I thought Rose was going with Sweet B," Emmett said as we met him and Seth in the hallway.

"Bella told me that, too," I told him knowing for a fact Bella never mentioned Ali going, too.

Seth looked between us and shrugged his shoulders. "Tan said she was going and she was taking Heidi with her."

I ran my hand through my hair, wondering what the hell was going on. "Well, son, I'll tell you, your mother and Diane mentioned they were going with Bella today as well."

"What the hell?" I asked, knowing no one knew anymore than I did other than the fact the all the girls were with Bella today at Travis's office.

Fuck!

Travis's office!

"Son of a bitch!" I hissed as I looked at each of the guys. "They all went so they could meet Travis. I'll bet you a hundred fucking bucks."

Each of them took a moment to comprehend what I told them and you could see the light bulb go off for each of them in turn.

"No way!" Emmett hissed and I nodded my head. I was convinced they had, but I also knew Bella had no idea they would be there...sneaky women.

"He's really all that?" Jasper asked as we made our way downstairs to their kitchen where he handed each of us a beer.

I shrugged my shoulders and I took a long pull on the bottle. "What the hell am I supposed to say? I don't make it a habit to ogle other guys you know."

"Well, we all know how much you hated her having to see him in the first place," Seth said and he gave me a pointed look.

"Yeah, well we all know I'm a jealous ass, especially about Bella, so no one should be surprised by that," I told him and every single one of those fuckers agreed with me.

We talked about the girls and how Bella was doing until we heard the front door open. "You all better not let them off the hook too easily," I warned as I turned to look at them all. "Even you, Pop. Bella had to have been mortified at traipsing into that office with all of them tagging along."

"No kidding," Jasper agreed as he stood up when the girls entered the room.

I watched their faces for a second until my girl walked in. I rushed to her and wrapped her in my arms and gave her a big kiss. "I missed you, baby, and you, too, Ladybug," I whispered against her stomach as I bent my head down.

"Edward, I'm..." she started to say but I cut her off with another kiss.

"Nope, I already know and I know you had nothing to do with it.

"Everything go okay?" I asked as I pulled her to a chair at the table.

I sat down and put her on my lap. "Yep, everything is just fine."

"Good," I whispered and kissed her cheek. "You can tell me all about it just as soon as we watch the show," I said with a chuckle as I pointed with my chin where my brother, father, and friends were standing with arms crossed, facing their women.

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**So, there you have it! We're having a girl! Next chapter will have the baby shower and then the arrival of Ladybug. I hope you liked it! **

**Next half will be up in 2 weeks, so be on the lookout. I'll post a teaser next Monday on Fictionators and the blog so be on the lookout! **

**A very , VERY special thank you to all of you who have followed me to my new story! You have no idea how much that means to me! Your support and response has been out of this world and more than I ever imagined or expected. For those that haven't taken a look at it yet, please do so. This one is pretty special to me! It's called _The Greatest Gift_ and it is listed on my profile.**

**One last thing, check out my profile for the link to the Fandom for Preemies Fundraiser that I am participating in. I've already submitted my wedding outtake from Maddie/Masen POV and there are works by 120+ authors that can be yours for a $5 donation to the March of Dimes. If you need more info, send me an email or a PM…I'll be happy to answer any questions you have.**

**Oh, BFF#2~ You better love me big time for this one, just saying! Love you...**

**That's it people, leave me your thoughts, okay and tell me if you're as excited as I am to watch our Edward with a little baby girl! Anyone want to guess on the names? Hehe...leave me a review, I'd love to hear from you.**

**See you in 2 weeks!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: SM owns Twilight. No copyright infringement is intended.**

**Hi again! Here is part two of the first outtake for The Path We Choose. I hope you like it and again, it's much longer than I anticipated it being, but I think you all are okay with that! **

**Thanks as always to Laurel for making my words pretty and for everything else(Happy 6 Month Anniversary my friend!) and to Jen and Becky for their input and help. To Amanda, my BFF and biggest cheerleader...there are no words, but I love you madly...and thanks for lending me the real Dr. Dreamy! BFF #2~ You did good in this one, hope you like it! I adore you like no other. **

****IMPORTANT INFO DOWN BELOW! PLEASE READ!****

**Now, let's have a baby, shall we? Oh and in case you need it...tissue warning...and some lemony goodness as well. **

**On with the story...**

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Outtake # 2 – A New Cullen**

**BPOV**

I giggled at Edward's glee at the predicament the female members of our family found themselves in. It was their own fault though, every last one of them; even poor Esme who looked at Carlisle with a sheepish smile. I had to hand it to my father-in-law; the pout she was giving him didn't look like it was working in the least.

"Jazzy," Alice whined to my best friend and tried her best to bat her long eyelashes at him. Normally that move turned Jasper into a puddle of goo, but right now, it was doing nothing except making his blue eyes glint even more. Jasper didn't even answer her; he just shook his head at her. When Alice hung her head and sighed, Jasper flashed me a quick grin and a wink. I had to turn my head and press my forehead against Edward's chest to keep from laughing out loud.

All around the room, the guys were giving their significant others the same treatment. Seth was staring at Tanya and shaking his head, Uncle Marcus was frowning at Aunt Diane, and Demetri just kept opening and closing his mouth at Heidi.

"Oohh, they're all in so much trouble," Edward chuckled in my ear and sounded so much like Maddie I had to bite the inside of my cheek to the point of almost drawing blood to stay quiet.

In the next instant, all the men were talking at the same time. The room was flooded with a chorus of 'How could yous' and 'I can't believe you would embarrass Bella like thats'. In the instant after that, it seemed like all the females decided it was every woman for herself when they turned on Tanya and then Rose.

"But, Car, Tanya kept going on and on about how nice-looking Dr. Hughes was, I just wanted to see for myself," Esme tried again. I saw the corners of Carlisle's lips lift slightly and then he caught himself before Esme could see him.

"Jas, Rose told us Bella would be by herself because Edward was going to be helping you. We were only trying to help," Ali said, throwing Rose completely under the bus.

Tanya looked at Rose with a wicked gleam in her eye and then looked at Seth and said, "It was all Rose's idea. She wanted to see Travis and thought it would be funny for all of us to show up at Bella's appointment."

Rose's blue eyes turned icy when suddenly all the girls tried the same excuse.

"Rosie, how could you?" Emmett questioned, his big arms crossed across his chest.

The room then erupted with all the girls blaming the whole thing on Rose, and I knew as I stood and watched my best friend grin evilly at Emmett, that things were about to take a surprising turn.

I heard her hiss in his ear, "If I'm going down, I'm taking you with me, you big oaf."

"Wait, Rose, no! Come on, please?" my brother-in-law begged and tried to cover her mouth with his hand.

Big mistake.

"Ow! Damn, Rose, that fucking hurt," Em cried out and shook his hand, trying to alleviate the sting of her biting him, I was sure.

Everyone finally stopped what they were doing and turned to look at the two of them and then she blurted out, "Em and I got married last month in Vegas. We eloped."

"Holy shit!" Edward breathed out in my ear.

"Emmett Cullen! What in the world is Rosalie talking about?" Esme said in a voice that was eerily calm. Never, ever a good sign when Esme got calm.

Edward shifted me off his lap so I could sit next to him instead of on top of him. My head spun and I tried to figure out what in the hell happened to my normally pragmatic and even-keeled best friend.

"Le, what the hell did you just say?" Jasper demanded. His voice had that icy, steel-hard tone he got only when he was about lose his temper. No one ever wanted to see Jasper lose his temper...ever. He rarely got so angry he did so, but when he did, it was enough to make anyone back off.

"Emmett, Rose, why don't you tell us what's going on," Carlisle stated. He looked at them each and made sure they understood his question wasn't optional, not in the least.

"Did you know anything about this?" Edward whispered in my ear as he wrapped an arm around me and scooted my chair as close to his as he could get it.

I shrugged my shoulders, trying to figure it out myself. "I had no freaking idea. I know Rose has talked about getting married...but it was always somewhere down the road. Oh, God, what if she's pregnant?" I stated, well, more like shrieked, but I couldn't help it.

Everyone in the room looked at me because apparently I hadn't said that as quietly as I thought I did.

"I am not pregnant!" Rose exclaimed and gave me a dirty look.

"Sorry, Le," I told her with a shrug of my shoulders. "What's going on?" I asked, hoping there was a logical explanation for what they'd done.

Emmett took Rose's hand in his and pulled her to his side, kissing her on the side of the head before he looked at the entire family in turn. "Look, we're really sorry we got married without telling any of you. We didn't do it to hurt anyone's feelings, but the truth of the matter is this. I want to have a baby, like now," he said and smiled at me and Edward. "But, Rose being the amazing woman she is, won't have one without being married first, so we hopped on a plane, went to Vegas, and got hitched. So, Sweet B, she's not pregnant…yet."

"Another baby?" Esme cried out and clapped her hands, apparently all anger at her oldest son running off to get married without her completely out the window since there was the prospect of another baby in the works.

Once it appeared as if the head of the family was okay with it, everyone jumped up and swarmed the two of them, passing out hugs and kisses and well-wishes. Well, everyone but Jasper…and Alice. Alice looked positively livid as she stood stomping her foot up and down until everyone turned to look at her.

"Rose, how could you? You know how much I was looking forward to planning your wedding with you! Bella's barely counted because it was so fast and she wouldn't let us do hardly anything. But you," she hissed as she shrieked at Rose and Emmett, "yours was going to be the one that we could go all out for!"

"I'm sorry, Alice, but I don't need a wedding like that. I have Em; that's good enough for me," Rose answered in as sweet a voice as I'd ever heard from her mouth. If there was any tiny shred of doubt I'd had about her getting married, it completely evaporated with that statement and the way she and Emmett looked at each other.

"Well, how about if we have a party to celebrate now?" Carlisle asked and that seemed to placate Alice.

"Jasper?" Rose said quietly and everyone turned to look at him. He still stood with his arms crossed and hadn't moved a muscle on his face from what I could tell.

"I can't believe you did this without telling me first, Rosalie," he said in a low, tense voice.

"Shit," I muttered under my breath and felt Edward pull me next to him. "He never, ever calls her Rosalie unless he's really pissed at her," I told him and felt him nod against my head. "Well, he sure as hell looks about ready to explode, that's for sure."

Jasper stared at Rose for another moment before he spun around and stomped up the stairs and slammed his door with a loud thud.

"Damn it," Rose whispered softly and wiped the tears that fell down her face. She hated more than anything when Jasper was upset with her.

"It'll be okay, babe, he's just surprised," Emmett said and I stood up to go hug my new sister-in-law.

"Oh my God!" I exclaimed and everyone turned to look at me again. "Rose, we're really sisters now," I told her, feeling a smile a mile wide appear on my face.

"Yep," she said with a nod and then engulfed me in a huge hug.

"Me, too! Me, too!" Alice yelled out, effectively lightening the mood in an instant.

"Way to get out of trouble for the whole Dr. Dreamy thing, sister," I teased with a bump of my shoulder.

"Hey, it worked, didn't it?" she teased back.

**EPOV- Beginning of June~**

"Dr. Cullen, your sister is on the phone for you," Carol said over the intercom. I couldn't help but smile, even though it had been the day from hell in the office today. For some reason, there was a sudden rash of fevers, runny noses, and coughs. Typical allergy symptoms, but it was all part of the job of being a pediatrician, especially one in such a small town.

"Hey, Ali," I said as I leaned back in my chair and let out a long, drawn out breath.

I heard her giggle on the other end and then she said, "Brother mine, you sound like you've had a long day."

"You don't know the half of it. What's up, everything okay?" I asked. It wasn't that out of the ordinary for her to call me as she did it on an almost every day basis and had since we'd moved, but I asked just the same.

"I'm fine, I just felt like calling," she said, letting her voice trail off at the end. That was a sure sign there was something bothering her, always had been.

"Ali," I began. "You know you can't pull that shit with me, what's wrong?" I asked.

She chuckled once she knew she'd been caught and started, "Jasper and I got into another argument."

I shook my head and then pinched the bridge of my nose. "He's still that upset about Em and Rose eloping to Vegas?" I asked.

I was as shocked as everyone else had been about them getting married, but they were both adults and I'd talked to Emmett plenty over the course of the past year to know that he wanted to marry Rosalie, the sooner the better. He had wanted to wait until the excitement of mine and Bella's wedding faded. He also wanted to wait until their business had taken off, which of course it did immediately. In fact, he and Rose were so busy with custom orders, they were going to have to hire more technicians to help complete all the work.

My sister sighed and said, "Yes, he is. In fact, I think he's even angrier now that a week has gone by than he was when they told us."

"I don't get it, Al," I admitted to her. Bella and I had talked about this as soon as we finally got on our way home after the debacle with the appointment with Travis followed by the bombshell Rose had laid on us.

"He's hurt, Edward. As much as he loves and adores Bella, Rosalie is his sister and is the only true family he has left. He feels cheated and he's angry that she would just up and do something so impetuously without giving him a second thought," she explained. I had to admit it, I sort of felt the same way.

Experiencing the whole marriage ceremony thing with Bella had been important to both of us. To me, the ritual of getting married before our friends and family and pledging ourselves for the rest of our lives to each other just cemented our commitment to each other. I didn't doubt that Rose and Emmett loved each other, I didn't doubt that they wanted to be married and would stay that way, but I would have liked to have shared their day with them, like they did with ours. I knew Bella felt that way and there was no doubt Mama did, too.

Sure, we were all happy for them, but I could understand where Jasper was coming from. Even after their explanation of why they'd done it, which I understood and even had to admire a bit, it still left all of the family feeling a bit left out.

"I can understand and appreciate that, Alice, but why did you two argue? Surely, you can see where he's coming from," I said with a snicker, reminding her of her own reaction to the news of the wedding.

To say that my sister had been irate would be an understatement. Whereas my mom and Jasper had both been eerily calm, Alice had been just the opposite. I'm quite sure the entire City of New York knew how aggravated she was at missing out on planning a wedding. Bella had been so adamant about doing things her way and in such a short time frame, Alice had no chance in hell of getting out of hand.

Why she was so hellbent on planning other people's weddings, I had no idea. Everyone and their brother knew that Jasper was ready to pop the question…hell, he'd already talked to my dad and to me and Emmett months ago, so I had no idea what the holdup was. If I was to guess, it probably had something to do with my baby sister and her insane need to have everything go to plan. Sure made it hard as hell to surprise the little pixie.

Alice blew out a frustrated breath and said, "I told him to stop being so damn stubborn and just be happy for both of them. I also told him if he ever got around to putting the ring on my finger that I've known he's had for months, he better pull his head out of his ass and ask me before I got tired of waiting and asked him myself. He didn't take too kindly to that," she finished sounding just a tad bit irritated and a lot upset.

I leaned back in my chair and said, "Ali Cat, you didn't," knowing full well my incredibly bossy sister did. "Damn, sister mine, you really know how to mix shit up, don't you?"

"Edward, I called you for help, not to tell me what a bitch I am. I already know, thank you very much," she snapped at me and I instantly felt bad.

"Okay, okay," I told her as I tried to come up with some good advice for my sister. We spent a few minutes talking things through and by the end she felt better. I wasn't sure Jasper would get over being upset with her as quickly as she was convinced he would, but she knew him a lot better than me.

"Speaking of getting out the doghouse, my sister-in-law didn't sound so good when I talked to her earlier," Alice said nonchalantly. When her words registered, finally, I almost fell out of my chair.

"Wait!" I yelled in the phone. "What the hell are you talking about?" I demanded as my mind quickly went over the past few days and I tried to search for a screw-up. Finding none, I demanded again, "Alice, what did Bella tell you?"

She sighed and then said, "Edward, for a doctor you can be really stupid sometimes." I didn't say anything back for a few minutes as I wracked my brain, trying to figure out what the hell I'd done to upset my wife.

"You really have no idea?" she asked again and I said, "Damn it, Alice, no I really fucking don't. She seemed perfectly fine this morning when I left for work. We had breakfast, I left and dropped the kids off at school, and then came here. Same as I do every morning," I told her still furiously thinking of what I could have done.

"And when you left, what exactly did you do, big brother?" Alice asked in a way that made me stop and think.

"Shit," I hissed as I realized what I'd done.

"Exactly," Alice said smugly, apparently quite happy to have company in the same doghouse. "You better think of something good to make it up to her," she chided and I immediately had a brilliant idea. I'd been saving something for a special occasion, and this fit the bill perfectly. Of course, I would still need to apologize for what I'd done, but I was pretty sure I'd be forgiven once I was done.

"I guarantee I'm out of the doghouse before you, baby sister," I said smugly.

She giggled and then groaned, "Well, Edward, it's hard to out cheese you when you get an idea, that's for damn sure, so I'm not even taking that bet. However, you forget that I'm the one that says yes or no to the sexin', so I think I'm going to be just fine," she teased and I started saying, "La la la, I can't hear you!" Knowing what my sister and her 'cowboy' did in their bedroom was not something I wanted to ever think about if I could help it.

"Love you, Edward! Don't make me have to tell Mama you've upset Bella," she warned and I laughed.

"No worries, Ali. By the end of the night, Bella will be just fine…better than fine actually," I promised. "Love you, too, and be nice to Jasper, he puts up with a lot."

"I know. Talk to you soon," she finished and then hung up.

"Carol," I said into the intercom as soon as I hung up with Alice, "can you check the appointments for the rest of the afternoon real quick?" I asked, hoping that I could get out of the office and home before Bella did.

I knew she was helping at the kids' school this afternoon with the end of year picnic so I hoped I could get home and get things set up before she arrived. In all actuality, though I certainly didn't mean to hurt her feelings this morning, things couldn't have turned out better if I had been planning this for days.

"Dr. Cullen, your last appointment was supposed to be at two o'clock, but they just called to cancel. So you're actually done for the day…if you need to go home and see Bella," she said with a chuckle.

"Damn Alice," I muttered under my breath, but then smiled. "Thanks, Carol," I said as I poked my head out of my office. "If you want to go ahead and take off early, you can. I'm going to head out, too, before anyone else has a chance to come in for a runny nose," I told her as I shrugged off my lab coat and reached for my suit jacket.

"Thanks," she told me as she turned off her computer. "Oh, and Edward," she called and I turned to look at her. "You might want to ask Charlotte to keep Maddie and Masen for the night…just a suggestion," she finished with a wink and wave as she left the office.

I pulled my phone out and asked Charlotte if the kids could spend the night with Wyatt and Emily and after getting a yes along with a stern 'stop being such a jerk' from my nurse and friend, I hurried home. As soon as I set my briefcase down, I raced upstairs and took a quick shower. I put on a pair of cargo shorts and a t-shirt and then got the things I needed from the bathroom and laid them out beside the bed. Next, I grabbed the robin's egg blue box tied with a white ribbon out of the closet where I'd hid it after a recent trip to New York. I knew I wanted to give this particular gift to Bella, I just hadn't decided when, but today seemed like the perfect opportunity.

Waiting sucked because I missed my wife and wanted to see her, but I knew I had some making up to do before anything could happen. Finally, I heard the garage door open and listened to Bella as she came up the stairs. I looked up and found her staring at me from the doorway, looking almost exactly like I'd pictured her all those months ago when she'd first told me she was pregnant because she had on a short dress and had her hair up in a ponytail. She looked so damn beautiful.

"Bella, angel, I'm so sorry about this morning," I told her as I stood up to walk toward her. "I didn't mean to leave without telling you I loved you or kissing you goodbye."

It might seem like a small thing, but I never left the house without telling her I loved her or without telling her goodbye. I hated the fact that I'd done so today without realizing it.

"It's okay, Edward. I know you didn't do it on purpose. I was more upset about it than I needed to be," she told me and I shook my head at her.

"No, Bella, I'm sorry. I should never be too busy to tell you I love you or tell you goodbye, so in order to make it up to you," I told her as I took her hand and pulled her toward the bed, "I'm going to give you a massage."

"Edward, it's okay really. You don't have to," she said and I shut her up with a kiss.

"Shut the hell up. I'm trying to do my husbandly duty and make it up to you since I screwed up. So, you are going to get a massage, whether you want one or not," I told her and sat her down on the edge of the bed. I carefully slid her sandals off her feet and then stood her up to pull her dress off. I had to swallow a few times when she was naked except for her bra and panties, but this was about her and not me so I tried not to pay attention to my hardening erection in my shorts.

I gave her a quick kiss and then carefully arranged her on the towel I had spread out on the bed. I picked up the remote and turned on some soft music and then set to work on worshiping my gorgeous wife.

I picked up a bottle of massaging oil and poured some in my hand. I had warmed it in some hot water so it would feel good against her skin. I undid the clasp of her bra and again I had to take a few deep breaths before I began.

Bella hummed in appreciation the moment my hands slid across her skin and I smiled. I hated that I upset her this morning, but I was excited about sharing this with her.

"Edward," she started to say and I bent down and whispered in her ear.

"Shhh, Bella. Just relax and enjoy. This is all about you, for you," I told her as my fingers kneaded the tense muscles in her back. I continued rubbing her, down her back, along her sides, and then to her thighs and calf muscles. "You have been so amazing through this whole pregnancy so far, baby. Even when you don't feel a hundred percent, you give so much of yourself to all of us. Today at the kids' picnic, Maddie's soccer team, Masen's drum lessons...to me every day. You blow me away every damn day with how strong you are, how perfect you are," I told her, meaning every single word.

I continued on, loving the fact that I could feel her relax beneath my fingers. It wasn't even about making love to her, it was about showing her how much she meant to me and how much a part of me she always was...and always would be.

"I love you," she murmured quietly. Her eyes were closed and her eyelashes looked so dark against her pale skin. Her cheeks and the tip of her nose were a touch pink from being outside this afternoon and I loved her so fucking much.

"As I you, Angel. Always and forever," I whispered back. "I have something for you," I told her and wiped my hands off before reaching into the nightstand to pull out the box I'd got down from the closet earlier. I grabbed a clean towel and helped her sit up and wrapped the towel around her before kneeling on the floor in front of her. "I bought this the last time we went to the city. I thought it was only fair Ladybug had one of her own," I said and handed her the box, anxious to see what her reaction would be.

"Oh, Edward," she said tenderly as she lifted the sterling silver rattle out of the box. I hadn't had anything engraved on it yet, since we weren't positive on her name yet, and of course didn't know her birthday, but I wanted her to have this, now. "I was going to just get in engraved with Ladybug on it, but figured we should wait until we have her name picked out and her birthday," I told her with a grin and reached up to wipe the tears that had fallen down her cheeks away with my thumbs. "Speaking of birthday, I've already ordered her birthstone to add to your ring and the disc to add to your bracelet," I explained as I lifted her right hand and kissed the mother's ring she still wore every day. The bracelet she didn't wear every day, but I wanted her to have the charm to add anyway.

"I love it, love you," she breathed out as she pulled me up so that she could kiss me. I kissed her with everything, with every ounce of love and gratitude for having her in my life, as the mother of my children. As if God above was watching, at just that moment, I felt a tiny nudge against my stomach and I gasped in surprise.

I fell to my knees and moved the towel out of the way and laid my hand over Bella's stomach. "Edward?" Bella questioned as I stared up at her, my own tears falling down my face.

"I felt her," I whispered in awe. I knew my daughter was in there, safely protected by her mommy, but I hadn't felt her yet. I'd been waiting, fuck I'd been waiting for this moment, since I first found out Bella was pregnant.

Bella reached her hands down and cupped my face as I waited to feel my daughter again. Thankfully I didn't have to wait long until I felt the movement again. Just a small nudge, but it was enough. "My precious daughter, I can't wait until you are here," I whispered against the skin of Bella's stomach.

"Come, Daddy," Bella softly said and pulled me on the bed with her. She slid a t-shirt over her head and propped herself up on a stack of pillows. She held her hands out to me and I crawled on the bed and laid my head beside Bella's stomach, after moving the loose shirt out of the way. I kept my hand protectively on top, and ran my fingers back and forth over her. I felt Bella's fingers run through my hair and over my cheek and we spent the rest of the afternoon, laying in bed and feeling our daughter move.

I kissed her stomach and was rewarded with a soft kick. "I love you, Bella," I picked my head up and said before settling back down with both my girls.

**BPOV- Beginning of July~**

"Mommy, are you okay?" Maddie asked me one morning as she sleepily walked into the kitchen. Ladybug had decided that today she was going to practice being a gymnast apparently...well, she could be trying her soccer moves, too, I supposed, because her little foot was kicking like crazy, along with the somersaults she was currently practicing.

I rubbed my stomach and tried to get her to calm down and then looked at Maddie. "Yep, babygirl, I'm fine. Your sister is just a little rowdy this morning. She takes after her brother I think," I told her with a wink and then wrapped my arm around her.

"Can I feel?" she asked and I nodded. I reached down and took her hand and then gently laid it over my stomach.

It never failed to put a smile on hers and Masen's face. And well, Edward's face...from the moment he knew the baby was a girl, the smile had only grown. I knew he would have been ecstatic with a boy, but he was so freaking adorable every time someone would mention the baby. The only time the smile was bigger than when he talked about her was when he felt her move...and he tried to do that as often as he could. Edward was just a tiny bit...well a lot actually... obsessed with my ever-growing stomach.

She giggled when she got a swift kick against her hand and I ran my fingers through her messy but beautiful hair. "Why don't you go get Mase up and take Rufus outside for a bit?" I asked her and kissed her before she ran off to get her brother, Rufus following right behind her.

He heard the word outside and he was raring to go!

It was the beginning of July and we were getting ready to head to the city and stay at the loft for the duration. If there was one thing I could change about having this baby, it was that I wished I could stay here, at home. We had been in Lake George for over a year and a half now and it was where I felt the most comfortable. Edward and I had a routine we followed most days with the kids and we were happy, content with the way things were. Oh, I would do whatever was necessary to stay healthy and make sure Ladybug was fine, so if that meant being closer to Dr. Hughes and expert medical help if it was needed, then I was there. No fussing, no question, no complaining. Whatever needed to be done, it would be. It was going to be an adjustment though...because Edward would still have to go back to Lake George during the week for the next few weeks. Dr. Sanders was going to fill in for him for about six weeks so Edward could be with me both before and after the baby came, but there was no way he could close the office for such a long period of time.

I knew it would be hard for both of us...and again it wasn't ideal at all, but it was a sacrifice we were both willing to make. It was beginning to take more and more of a toll on me to travel back and forth to New York for my check-ups and Travis wanted to start seeing me once a week, so it only made sense to stay in the city until the big day.

"Morning, Mama," Edward whispered in my ear as he stepped up behind me and kissed the side of my neck. "Morning, Ladybug," he said with a smile as he laid his hand over my stomach and was rewarded with a nudge by his daughter.

"She's been a moving and a shaking this morning," I said with a sigh.

Edward turned me around so that I was facing him and he bent over and lifted the loose shirt I was wearing and pressed a soft kiss against my tummy. "Why do you want to keep your Mama from getting a good night's sleep, huh, my little ladybug?" he asked sweetly. "Don't you know by now she's kinda crabby when she's tired?" I snorted at that, even though I couldn't disagree with him. Sleep was a precious commodity these days.

Our daughter had decided that her favorite spot was right up against my ribs, with her foot pressed against my bladder so not only was I uncomfortable because I couldn't sleep in the position I liked to, I felt like I had to pee constantly. I was already dreading the much talked about baby dropping part of the pregnancy when she would have her head pushed up right against my pelvis and I had to waddle around like a penguin.

"You doing okay this morning?" Edward asked as he stood up after giving his daughter one more quick kiss.

I didn't say anything for a minute and I felt Edward's fingers lift up my chin so I could look at him. "Bella, what's wrong?" he asked, worry evident in his voice.

I smiled softly at him so that he wouldn't worry unnecessarily. The man freaked at every twinge, cramp, and uncomfortable sound I made. I must get asked a minimum of ten, fifteen times a day if I'm okay. Text message, email, phone call, he was constantly checking up on me. A bit on the over the top side of things, but typical Edward Cullen behavior.

"Nothing is wrong. I'm just thinking about how much we have to do before we go to the city. Maddie and Masen's birthday party is in a few days and I have to check with all the parents to make sure they know exactly what the kids will be doing at the party," I said with a shake of my head.

I couldn't believe that Edward, Maddie, and Masen had talked to me into this insanity. Did my kids and wonderful husband want to do something normal like putt-putt or go-kart rides...noooo. Instead they wanted to have their party at Adirondack Extreme and get hooked up to harnesses and climb bridge nets and go down zip-lines. I was as adventurous as the next person, but thinking about Maddie, and Masen, too, twenty feet up in the air as they went across bridges and swings and such attached to a harness was enough to make my heart clench and my tummy hurt. But, it was what they wanted and Edward convinced me it was safe, so it was what we were doing for their birthday. To say that Jasper, Seth, Emmett, and Demetri were excited about getting up on the adult trails would be an understatement. Even Rose and Tanya were going up on the adult side, too. Well, at least Esme, Alice, and Aunt Diane would keep me company while we waited on the ground.

"God, I can't wait!" Edward gleefully said and I couldn't help but chuckle at his excitement. I thought he was the most excited out of any of them. He'd already spent hours at the local outdoors store and more money than he'd needed to getting climbing gloves and backup climbing gloves. He'd bought some for all of the adults, even Carlisle and Uncle Marcus. I had to admit, part of me was extremely jealous to not be sharing this experience with the rest of them.

Edward must have caught my frown because he cupped my face and gave me a sweet kiss. "Don't worry, baby, we'll go again when you can come with us," he said when he saw the pout on my face.

I huffed and rolled my eyes at him, even though he'd said exactly the right thing. "I know, but it's not the same. You'll have already done it without me," I whined.

"Aww, Bella," he said as he picked up my hands and rubbed his lips back and forth across the back of them. "I'll wait and go with you if you want me to." He would, too, if I asked him, but I wouldn't ever do that to him. He'd been looking forward to getting up and climbing with the guys for weeks now.

I reached my hands up and ran my fingers through his hair and shook my head. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm just feeling sorry for myself. I would never ask you to not go; Emmett would never survive up there if you didn't go along. You don't want Rose coming after you for letting the future father of her baby get hurt would you?"

He shuddered at the thought and then shook his head at me. "Hell no!" he stated emphatically. "She scares me on a normal basis. Can you imagine what she'd do now that she's married to the idiot and is foolish enough to want to give him a baby? No, thank you, Angel. I'll be doing everything within my power to make sure he doesn't let his big ass fall out of the tree."

"Be careful, Edward. That's your sister-in-law you're talking about there," I teased him and he graced me with his typical shit-eating grin.

"Yours, too, baby," he said back and I couldn't help but smile.

I was beside myself, once I had gotten over the shock of Rose and Em being married of course, when I realized that we were really sisters now. Sisters-in-law if you wanted to get completely technical, but sisters nonetheless. Sure we'd been as close as blood sisters could possibly be for most of our lives, but there was something so concrete, so permanent about being related through marriage. Rose most definitely wasn't the kind to marry unless it was forever and there was no way in hell Edward was ever getting rid of my ass, so it looked like we were going to be family for the duration.

Edward scoffed and then bent his head down to nuzzle the side of my neck with his nose. It didn't take long before I felt his lips and then his teeth on the sensitive skin behind my ear.

I moaned, much louder than I intended to, when I felt his tongue trace delicious circles and felt his hands reach around and grip my ass and press me against him. The baby bump made it a little difficult to get too close to him, but I wasn't so big that I couldn't at least wrap my arms around him.

"Mmmm, Bella," he whispered huskily as he nudged the strap of my cami to the side with his nose and then I felt warm, open-mouthed kisses across my collarbones and shoulders. "I've missed being with you, making love to you," he said and then I felt the pads of his thumbs rub gently across my hardening nipples.

The last few weeks had been a little rough and because of that, it had been some time since Edward and I had made love. He'd been really busy at the office and I had been feeling a little under the weather. Maddie and Masen's school year had just ended and we were all trying to adjust to a new routine, so it had been a hectic time in the Cullen household.

"Edward," I breathed out, getting more turned on by the second. Feeling him touch me, pressed against me was always welcome, but even more so when it had been as long as it had been since we'd had sex.

Maddie and Masen had taken off outside as soon as she'd gotten Masen out of bed and I could hear them laughing through the open doors to the deck. Edward must have recognized that we were safe for the immediate future because his hands slid up under my shirt and cupped my ever growing breasts. He gently kneaded them, paying special attention to my hardened and very sensitive nipples.

"You taste so good," he whispered against my skin when he bent down and flicked his tongue against my now exposed breasts.

His hands slid around my body and cupped my ass and he lifted me up and set me on the counter, out of the view of little eyes if they were to come barreling inside as they were apt to do from time to time. My legs immediately wrapped around his waist and I could feel how hard he was through his basketball shorts. I immediately felt an ache between my legs coupled with panties that were getting wetter by the moment as he rubbed against me.

"Oh, God," I rasped when he thrust his hips forward and hit the perfect spot.

Sitting on the counter allowed me to arch my back enough so that he could get right against me. With Ladybug it had been getting harder and harder to feel him against me this way and my body reacted instantly.

"Shit, Bella…" Edward groaned as he began to rock against me, obviously enjoying our position as much as I was.

"I've missed you, missed this," I whispered hoarsely.

He captured my lips in another scorching kiss, one that was full of so much need and want it made my toes curl and I wrapped my legs around him as tightly as I could.

"I want to be inside of you so fucking badly," Edward hissed as he pressed his hard length against me.

"Edward," I began only to be interrupted by a yell of "Mama!" as Masen raced into the house. Edward was able to remove his hands from beneath my shirt and lower me to the floor before our son skidded to a stop in front of the island.

He looked from me to Edward as if he was trying to figure out what was wrong with the two of us. Poor Edward was breathing in and out in my ear as he tried to relax and I probably didn't look much better.

"Can Wyatt and Emily come over?" he asked after he stopped staring at us and I sighed, knowing that any fun times with Edward were going to have to wait...again.

"Later, Bella. I mean it," my very sexually frustrated husband grunted in my ear and then swatted me on my ass as he went to go upstairs.

Later couldn't come soon enough if you asked me.

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

The next few days had flown by since I stayed busy getting things ready for the birthday party…and my baby shower. Since the family came up here to celebrate Maddie and Masen's birthday and acted like a pack of monkeys climbing in trees, it made sense to have the shower now. I hadn't wanted one, but I relented thanks to the persuasiveness of Esme and Sue. I knew this was a whole different experience for the entire family from when the twins were born, so I let them plan what they wanted. I was adamant in keeping it as low-key as possible though. No fancy finger foods and no extravagant cake either. Just family and close friends hanging out for the day, getting ready for the arrival of the newest Cullen.

While the girls were going to have fun downstairs, the guys were going to get the crib assembled and the furniture moved into Ladybug's room. Edward and I had already painted it a light sage green color with brown trim. The furniture we had picked out was whitewashed and the accents of brown, green, and pink made the room look amazing. With the windows and the sheer curtains, the room was bright and airy and I loved finding any excuse at all to spend time in there.

I felt Edward shift behind me and felt his lips on the top of my shoulder once he'd woken up. Poor guy was tuckered right out with all that climbing and exercise he got yesterday at the birthday party. Thankfully no one had gotten hurt, not even Emmett, though I thought that was a fluke more than anything. The party had been a huge success and I had to admit, watching the activity sucked and I made Edward promise me we could go back once I had the baby.

"I have to get up, sweetheart," I told him after we'd lain silently for a few minutes. "It's going to be another long day."

"Bella, if it's too much, you just say the word. I know everyone is excited about Ladybug and they just want to spend time with us, but you two come first. I mean it, you need to tell me if you need a break," he said and rolled me over to face him. He leaned forward and kissed my forehead and then both of my cheeks. "Promise me, Bella," he said with a worried look and I ran my fingers through his hair.

"I will, but I'm fine. I slept pretty well last night and I didn't do much walking yesterday. Try not to worry so much," I reassured him and pulled him to me for one more kiss before I got up.

"Bella," Esme admonished me a short while later when she caught me carrying some glasses to the dining room table. I set them down and turned to her.

"Esme, I can carry glasses for goodness sake," I told her.

"I know you can, dear, but this is your party. You shouldn't have to help set up," she tsked with a shake of her head.

"No, this is yours and Sue's party," I cheekily said and she rolled her eyes at me.

Before long the house was filled with women and I could hear the guys upstairs as they moved the furniture around.

Maggie, Zaphrina, and Angela were there along with Carol, Charlotte, and the rest of my family. After they all had their fill of rubbing my belly and giving me a hug, we all sat down in the living room to visit.

"Bella, sweetie, you look fantastic," Maggie said as she sat down and munched on the finger foods Esme and Aunt Diane had prepared.

I smiled at her and rubbed my stomach. "Thanks, Maggie. I'm feeling really good."

"Damn it, Emmett!" Edward hollered which caused us all to laugh. There was no telling what that was for.

"What? It looked like it would fit," he answered back. That didn't sound good at all.

"Emmett, really son," Carlisle said in a weary voice and it took everything I had not to rush upstairs to see what was happening.

"Let's open presents!" Alice exclaimed, effectively turning everyone's attention to me instead of what was going on upstairs.

There wasn't anything we needed for the baby as we'd gotten all of the furniture on our last trip to the city. I told Esme and Sue to let everyone know that while I was happy to let them give me a shower, I didn't need anyone going overboard. Plus, whatever the others gave me, they had to bring two of and the other gift would go to Zaph and the shelter.

I got bunches of blankets, onesies, dresses, and bows in every shade and pattern under the rainbow. The gifts were all amazing and I thanked them all profusely for everything they'd given me and the baby.

The last two presents were from Sue and Esme and I had a feeling that was on purpose.

Sue stood up and handed me a box and gave me a quick kiss before she took her seat. I opened the box with shaking fingers and let out a gasp when I saw what was inside. "Sue?" I questioned and felt a few tears leak from the corners of my eyes. In the box was a blanket, and one I hadn't seen in a long time. "Is this?" I asked and she nodded her head. I picked the blanket up and held it against my chest before I explained to everyone, "Sue made this for me when I was a baby. I thought it was gone," I whispered.

"Charlie gave it to me for safe keeping a long time ago. I had hoped that I could give it to you when you were going to have your own child. I'm so glad you like it," she said and I threw myself into her arms.

"I can't believe he gave it to you to keep for me," I said with a sniff and sat down again and waited for Esme's gift.

"I hope you like it," Esme said as she handed me a flat box.

I tore the paper off and immediately started to cry. "Oh, Esme," I said and laid a shaking hand over the gift. I picked it up and set it on my lap and stared in awe at what she'd done. The photo album she'd given me matched the one the kids had given me all those months ago, but it was the picture on the cover that took my breath away. Esme had taken a picture of mine, Edward's, Maddie's, and Masen's hands as they laid on my stomach and she'd printed it out in black and white.

It was the most beautiful picture I'd ever seen, and you couldn't even see our faces, but the love that we felt for one another and for Ladybug leapt off the page it was so present.

"Thank you," I whispered to her and knew I was blessed beyond words to have such an amazing family.

Ladybug was going to be so very loved and everyone was so excited to meet her.

**EPOV- Beginning of August~**

"Shit" I muttered as I slapped my hand on the steering wheel. "Motherfucker." I looked ahead of me and all I saw was a long line of cars, all with their brake lights on.

I let out an exhausted sigh and prepared to wait until whatever was causing the traffic delay to get cleared out so I could get the hell home. Well, not really home, but get to Bella and by God, that was all that mattered.

These last few weeks sucked ass...hard. Being apart was so much worse than I ever anticipated it being. Oh, I knew I would hate it, I just didn't realize that I would be so lonely and miserable. I hated with every fiber of my being, being away from Bella at all, but missing out on the last few weeks of her pregnancy was for shit. Every Monday morning when I would wake up and head back to Lake George, I literally felt like part of me was being ripped away, and every Thursday night, I felt myself come back together again. Sleeping apart three nights a week was certainly less than ideal, but it was for the safety of both my girls, so it had to be done.

The pregnancy had gone, so far at least, as well as anyone could have hoped for, but Travis wasn't taking any chances. I had to hand it to the guy, he was a damn fine doctor and I couldn't have asked for better care for Bella than from him. Oh, he still drove me freaking nuts calling Bella and Maddie 'honey' and 'darlin' all the damn time, but even I couldn't find fault with the way he'd handled Bella's pregnancy.

When he told Bella it was time for her to go see him once a week, we knew it was time for her to stay at the loft. I knew that between my mom, Rose, Ali, Seth, Jasper, Emmett, and the others that Bella had more help that she could possibly need, but it still just felt so wrong to not be with her day in and day out. To not be able to rub her back if she got a pain, to not feel my Ladybug move as I laid my hands over Bella's stomach while we slept, to not be able to kiss her good night and good morning every day was pure torture.

I knew, deep down and when I wasn't pouting which Lord knew I did a whole hell of a lot of, that it was only for three nights a week. That helped some, but not very much. I didn't want to be away from any of them at all...ever, so even knowing that it was only a few days a week wasn't much of a comfort.

I just wanted to get home and see my family...was that too fucking much to ask?

Finally the traffic began to move, albeit slowly, but it was forward progress just the same.

I was so grateful to Dr. Sanders that he had been willing to step in and help out at the practice until Bella had the baby and we brought her home with us to Lake George. I wasn't sure how much longer I would have been able to stand being so far away and I knew it was beginning to show to everyone else as well. I would be eternally thankful to Travis for getting us through this pregnancy, but I also knew if we were lucky enough for Bella to get pregnant again, she'd be staying home and having the baby there. This whole back and forth thing was a supreme pain in the ass.

As I got closer to the city, I could feel my skin begin to tingle. Once I'd passed the cause of the traffic jam, and was able to continue on without any further delays, it took all I could not to drive like a maniac to get to the loft. I glanced down at the clock and realized it was almost nine o'clock. I probably missed Maddie and Masen because I assumed Bella had them in bed already, but I was hoping beyond hope that my wife was still awake.

I pulled up into the parking garage of the loft, threw the car in park, grabbed my bag, and raced to the elevator. As the elevator creaked upward, I had to take a few deep breaths in and out to keep myself from ripping the doors open and running into the loft like a crazy man. I just needed to see Bella, to touch her and kiss her, and I needed to feel our baby move inside of her.

The thing I missed the most during the past few weeks was the constant pull to each other we always felt when we were together. That connection that kept us in tune with the other, in a way that no one but us could understand. Sure I loved sleeping next to her, holding her, making love to her, but it was that unexplainable, unbreakable tie that I missed more than anything.

I slid my key into the door as quietly as I could and slowly opened the door. The sight that greeted me made me drop my bag on the floor with a thud and my body almost followed it. In our special corner Bella had set up a few bean bags, to help her get up and down easier I'm sure, some candles and of course our lights still twinkled overhead. I chuckled when I saw a bottle of sparkling grape juice chilling in a bucket of ice and then I about lost every ounce of breath in my body when I heard the song that was playing on the docking station. The song was _They Bring Me To You_ by Joshua Radin and it never failed to remind me of Bella.

I sucked in a sharp breath and my eyes immediately searched the loft for Bella and I found her eyes staring back at me from where she stood beside the island of the kitchen.

"Bella," I breathed out. I had her in my arms before her whole name could pass my lips and I had my mouth pressed tight against hers and had plunged my tongue deep into her warm, waiting mouth.

She sagged against me and I felt her heart pounding against my chest through the thin material of the nightie she had on. Bella always looked exceptionally beautiful and since she'd been pregnant had even been more so, but tonight, she looked beyond that, though I couldn't come up with a word that would accurately describe her. Her hair was shiny and had big, loose curls in it. Her eyes shone in the candlelight, and even though it had only been a little over three days since I'd last seen her, her stomach seemed even more round than before.

It always made me chuckle, though it was very quietly, when we would be out in public. From the back, it would be impossible to tell Bella was pregnant; she was seriously all basketball baby belly. Sure her boobs were a bit fuller, but other than that, the only thing that changed on her body was her stomach. She was, without a doubt, the sexiest, most magnificent-looking pregnant woman that had ever walked the planet…hands down.

"Fuck, baby," I moaned into her mouth and kissed her deeply. "I missed you so fucking much; I was going crazy without you."

"We missed you, too, Edward," my wife whispered once I pulled my lips away from hers to allow her to breathe.

I didn't miss the possessive pronoun and I immediately bent over and ran my hand over Bella's stomach. "Hello, Ladybug, Daddy missed you like crazy, too," I said softly and smiled when I felt a nudge against my hand.

Bella swore our daughter liked my voice better than hers because it never failed that every time I talked to her, she would move and press against wherever my hand rested. I wasn't so sure she liked mine better, but I couldn't deny that I loved feeling her move whenever she heard my voice. It was the most amazing thing ever and just one of the hundreds of things that made sharing this experience with Bella so special.

I stood up and pulled her into my arms again and I couldn't help but brush my lips against hers. "How are you feeling?" I asked after I kissed her for a few minutes. I figured I'd better get my questions in quickly, because the way I was feeling right at this moment, there wouldn't be talking going on for long.

I ached to feel her body next to mine, to feel every bit of her skin, to kiss her from the top of her head to her adorable pink painted toes.

She lifted her head from my chest and tipped her head up to look at me. Her eyes were still sparkling and from the sexy smirk on her gorgeous face, I supposed it was a stupid question, but I'd been asking it multiple times a day for eight months now, it was kind of a habit. "Right, silly question," I grinned back at her and kissed the end of her nose before I swept her up in my arms and carried her to the carefully arranged bean bags.

As soon as I laid her down on them, I followed her and laid down beside her. I ran my fingers through her soft, silky hair and marveled how much I just missed touching her, being close to her. _Three days_, I thought…we'd only been apart three days and it seriously felt like forever. "Next time, I'm taking off for a year," I told her with a smile, though if I could get away with it, I would do it in a heartbeat. "I hate being away from you, even if it was only for three days," I told her honestly and leaned forward to kiss her again.

My tongue traced the outline of her lips, slowly taking my time and savoring every part of them. Over and over again, before I heard Bella grunt in the back of her throat. "Too bad, Angel, I've missed these lips something fierce, I'm taking my time," I told her when I picked my head up and looked down into her dilated eyes. The twinkle lights from overhead mixed with the glow from the candles and her eyes looked almost black.

She reached a tiny hand out and ran her fingertips over my cheek and down the side of my jaw, leaving a trail of molten fire in their wake. It was like that every damn time she touched me and if it ever stopped, I didn't know what I would do. Just the slightest of touches from her and I was done for…completely gone. I was already hard, and the pull to bury myself deep inside of her was strong, but she'd gone to a lot of trouble and she deserved a hell of lot more than for me to be quick about things.

"Do you know how happy you make me?" I whispered to her as I shifted my body so I was as close to her as I could get. My hands found their way to her shoulders and I slid one hand in her hair and cradled the back of her head. With my other, I let my fingertips ghost over her body, reacquainting myself with every inch of her skin that was exposed.

"Do you know what it does to me that you continue to surprise me day in and day out?" I asked softly as I bent my head forward and kissed across the top of her shoulder and along her collarbones. They were still one of the sexiest things on her body to me and they never failed to turn me the hell on.

"Do you know how lucky I am? How every day I get to spend with you, every day I get to love you, makes me the luckiest son of a bitch on the planet? Do you know," I whispered huskily and pressed my hardening cock against her thigh, "my Bella, that you are the most beautiful, the sexiest, and most amazing woman, ever?" I asked as I peppered her neck and then down toward her chest with wet, open-mouthed kisses.

"Mmmm, Edward," my angel moaned and I couldn't help but answer her back in kind. She plunged her fingers into my hair and scraped her nails along my scalp, causing me to shiver. I fucking loved when she did that, almost as much as when her nails scraped along my back.

"Edward, please," she rasped and I didn't need any further encouragement than that.

I pushed her delicate nightie up off over her head and had to take a moment to drink her in as she lay before me completely naked. "Oh, Bella, you are so fucking beautiful. You take my breath away," I whispered, and shook my head to keep from falling completely the fuck apart. My heart was so full of my love for her, for our unborn baby, for our family, that it was about all I could do to take a few deep breaths.

"I love you," I softly said and bent down to kiss her. "I love you," I told her again as I left a trail of kisses down to her breasts. "I love you," I breathed out as I took a distended nipple into my mouth and curled my tongue around it.

Bella arched her back off the beanbags and they molded to her body, supporting her and the baby so that I wouldn't hurt either of them. I felt her hands pull on the fabric of my t-shirt and I lifted my head up and pulled it over my head. I sat up on my knees and pushed my shorts and boxers down my legs, too. When I was as naked as she, I lowered my body next to hers and pulled her as close to me as I could get. We both let out a contented sigh of relief when we were skin to skin and felt that electric hum that I felt from the very first moment we met come alive.

"Touch me. I need you to touch me," she begged in a breathy, sexy as hell voice. She bent her head forward and flicked her tongue across my chest and then my nipples.

My hand slid between our bodies and found her bundle of nerves. She was already so damn wet and the way she moved against my fingers as I rubbed her, I knew it would only take a few touches until she came.

"That's it, my beautiful Isabella, come for me," I whispered as I sucked on the tender skin behind her ear. "Come, baby," I commanded again and then felt her fall apart as the orgasm rocked through her body.

Once she was done, I gently rolled her over, making sure her stomach was supported and that I wouldn't hurt her. I ran my hands up and down her back, massaging and touching every part of her. The twinkle lights and candles made her skin look golden as the glow danced across her skin. I brushed her hair over one shoulder and leaned forward and whispered in her ear. "I love you," I told her again, feeling like I couldn't say it enough.

"Then show me. Love me, now," she breathed out and pressed her ass against my erection.

"Jesus," I hissed. I gently gripped her hips and slowly entered her. Her heat engulfed me once I was fully inside of her and I moaned out in pleasure. "Fuck. You feel so damn good," I breathed out as I began to move. "You okay?" I questioned, needing to make sure she was all right.

"Yes, Edward...yes," she answered and moved with me.

I was so close to coming, but wouldn't without her. "You feel so good. Can you feel what you do to me, how hard you make me?" I rasped out as I continued moving in and out of her in a slow, steady rhythm.

"Oh...Edward, so close," she moaned beneath me and I could feel her walls pull me deeper inside of her.

"Together, my love, come with me," I told her, wanting and needing to feel her come apart.

Her legs shook and I heard her breath catch in her throat and then I felt her come...hard. She pulsed and fluttered around me and I came right after, in a mind blowing, white light inducing orgasm. It felt fucking amazing, and when I was done, I felt Bella come again, the spasms rocking through her entire body.

"Holy hell, Bella," I told her as I tried to catch my breath and we had laid down on the bean bags. I pushed her hair out of her face and kissed her forehead over and over again. There was something about that gesture that always filled my heart and it was just ours.

She giggled and leaned forward and rested her head on my shoulder. "Welcome home, Edward."

Welcome home indeed.

**BPOV- End of August, 5 days past due~**

"Edward!" I hollered from my totally uncomfortable position on the couch. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't walk, and right at the moment, I couldn't even get the hell up so that I could waddle my ass to the bathroom, for the umpteenth time today.

Edward approached the couch, warily as if I was a rabid dog and he was afraid to get snapped at, which if I was being honest, he was totally justified in doing. I had been a raving bitch the last few days. I knew it, he knew it, and anyone that had the unfortunate reason to cross my path knew it, too.

I had been to the hospital more times that I cared to admit with false alarms. Not entirely true, since it was only two times, but in my mind it was two too many. I had been told by everyone from Travis, Tanya, Edward, Esme, and countless others that it was normal with a first baby to have false alarms and to go past your due date, but neither one of those true statements made me feel any better. It was Thursday and I had had to go to the hospital yesterday to have a stress test to make sure Ladybug was still doing okay. Because both she and I were doing as good as could be expected and neither of us was under any harmful stress, I was given until Tuesday to deliver or else Travis would have to induce.

Edward tried to ensure me that it was absolutely normal to have the false labor pains and to be late, and even though I understood with the rational part of my brain, the part that was an emotional mess, didn't much care.

"Baby, are you okay?" Edward asked quietly as he stood next to the sofa and held his hand out to help me up.

I bit my bottom lip and nodded my head, trying to keep myself from bursting into tears at how sweet and helpful my amazing husband continued to be. "Yes, I'm fine," I huffed once I was upright and on my feet. "I'm just tired of waiting, Edward. I'm so sorry I've been so difficult," I told him as he helped me waddle to the bathroom.

"Bella, you haven't been," he started to say but stopped when I snorted to disagree with whatever sweet lie he was going to try so spout. "Fine, you have been a little bit grouchy, but it's understandable," he said with a smile, which I most definitely did not deserve. Edward wrapped an arm around me and kissed the side of my head and then my cheek. "I love you, even when you are being a pain in the ass."

He opened the door for me, and I stepped up on my tiptoes to kiss him quickly on the lips, though I had to lean over to do it since my belly was in the way. "I love you, too, Edward, even when I'm being a bitch," I told him with a giggle and closed the door to take care of my business. I felt a few twinges and had to breathe in and out a few times, which of course caused Edward to knock on the door.

"Bella, is everything okay in there?" he asked and I rolled my eyes but opened the door with a smile.

"Yes, just a few twinges is all," I told him and rubbed my stomach.

"Little one, you need to hurry the hell up and get here," Edward smiled and said against the tight skin of my stomach.

"No kidding! If she doesn't hurry up, I swear I'm changing her name to something like Gertrude or Bertha!" I said with a huff as he helped me back to the couch to resume my position of waiting.

Once I was situated and Edward had placed a pillow behind my back, he bent over the back of the couch and tipped my head up by my chin. "You will not name our daughter one of those names Bella Cullen! We have picked out an amazing name for her so you just sit there and look beautiful and rub your belly. She'll be here before too much longer, promise," he told me before giving me an upside down kiss. "And you, Ladybug, stop being so stubborn and just come on already. Everyone is very anxious to see you," he sweetly said as he leaned farther over and kissed the top of my stomach.

After rolling my eyes at how adorable he was, I couldn't help but giggle. "I can't wait to tell everyone her name."

No matter how much we had been begged, bribed, and threatened, neither one of us budged on telling anyone what her name was going to be. Maddie and Masen knew of course and we had warned every member of our family that if they pestered them for the name there would be no holding of Ladybug…none.

It was hilarious to watch Emmett, Demetri, and Tanya try to get the kids to accidentally spill, thinking if either one of them offered up the name all was good, but they failed every time. Maddie and Masen were hanging in there like troopers and they were enjoying watching the adults guess names as much as Edward and I were. I shuddered when I thought of some of the names they'd guessed.

The next two days passed with no more trips to the hospital and only a few contractions. Because it was Sunday, I had wanted to get up and make everyone pancakes like always and managed to somehow fight the laws of physics and got up out of bed. When I stood up I felt a sharp pain in my lower back and had to take a few deep breaths but when I looked down, well to the side and to my feet, there was no telltale puddle and I didn't feel a contraction so I carefully made my way to the kitchen to start breakfast.

Edward would argue with me, I was sure, but I wanted to try to go to Mass this morning with the family. I missed Father O'Connor something terrible even though I saw him just last weekend. I just felt like I needed to go today so I was going, no matter what my stubborn, and overprotective husband had to say about it.

I got the pancakes done in no time and with no mishaps surprisingly enough…and no one yelling at me for being up either. That was a surprise in and of itself! Maddie and Masen were just as anxious about me overdoing it as their father was and Masen was my little shadow. He was constantly adjusting pillows, getting me a glass of water, or rubbing my stomach, talking to his sister. It was the cutest thing ever. Not once did he fuss about not getting the brother he'd hoped for. He would always just say the next was going to be a boy so it was okay.

It might be just me, but I was pretty sure he was going to enjoy his status as big brother, the protector, and had every intention of fulfilling that duty to the utmost.

"Woof!" Rufus barked at my feet when he ambled up beside me. My other shadow. The little guy constantly followed me around and sat at my feet when I was on the sofa and had taken up residence on the floor on my side of the bed at night. He was as in tune with me as Edward was. Whenever I had a pain, his little ears would perk right up and he would bark, often before Edward even noticed.

I picked a piece of bacon off the platter and bent over to pat him on the head and give him a treat for being such a good dog. "Mama loves you, too, you big goof," I told him with a smile before I stood up.

Bad move…or good move depending on how you looked at.

"Edward!" I yelled, much calmer than I would have expected.

I heard him roll out of bed and mutter a loud, "Fuck!" before he threw the door open to look at me. "Bella?"

"It's time," I told him and watched his face morph into the biggest smile I had ever, ever seen.

"You sure?" he asked as he stood there looking deliciously rumpled from just getting out of bed.

I smirked at him and pointed to the floor where there was a puddle spreading at my feet. "I'd say so, wouldn't you?"

He stood there, stupefied for a second before he shook his head. "Holy shit, she's coming," he said excitedly and I nodded my head.

I couldn't help but laugh at him because he still hadn't moved. "Edward, sweetheart, why don't you wake up Mad and Mase so we can get dressed and go? Oh, and call Travis and let him know, too," I told him.

"Shit, yeah…Travis, kids," he muttered and turned around in a circle.

"Edward," I giggled at my ridiculous husband. "Kids, doctor, hospital, baby," I ticked off and laughed when it seemed like he'd finally pulled himself together. He rushed to my side and kissed me quickly on the lips and took my hand to help me into the bedroom so I could change my clothes.

"I love you so much, Bella," he whispered as he held onto me as I sat down on the edge of the bed.

He helped me into a clean pair of panties, some loose yoga pants, and a t-shirt before he stood up, still wearing only his boxers.

"I love you, too, you silly man. Now, get dressed and wake up the kids while I call Seth and tell him to come up here," I told him.

As soon as he walked out of the room, I took a few deep breaths. I had only had a few contractions so I knew I was still doing okay time wise but I couldn't help but say a quick prayer that everything would go fine with the delivery. If anything happened to her while I was giving birth…I shook my head, I couldn't even finish that thought and pressed the speed dial for Seth.

"Seth, it's time," I told him as soon as he answered, not even saying hello first.

"Shortcake?" he dumbly asked and I rolled my eyes. Men, what the hell was wrong with them?

"Of course it's me. You have another best friend about to have a baby I don't know about?" I teased and heard him mutter the same 'fuck' Edward just had.

"You sure?" he asked, again just like Edward.

Legitimate question to be sure, but I still huffed in annoyance at him. "Yes, I'm sure smartass. My water just broke. Edward is getting the kids up right now, so we'll leave them with you and go to the hospital," I told him, and I could hear Tanya shrieking in the background, sounding way too much like Maddie…and Alice.

"Are you okay?" he immediately asked and I sucked in a deep breath. He was still so damn sweet all the time and I still loved him like no other.

"Yes, I'm fine. Just excited and a little nervous," I told him quietly. "What if I can't do this Seth, what if something happens?"

"Bell, nothing will happen and you're the strongest person I know. It'll be fine, and Edward will be right there with you. I love you, and I'm so damn happy for you," he said sweetly and I couldn't help the few tears that fell. "Not only that, now we can finally call her something besides Ladybug," he chuckled and I laughed with him.

"I love you, too. So, hurry up so we can go to the hospital," I told him and hung up the phone.

I sat still for a second and rubbed my stomach, feeling another contraction and tried to breathe through it. It was a mild one and only lasted a few seconds, but I knew it wouldn't stay that way for long.

"Mama?" Masen asked as he poked his head in the door and I waved him forward. "Does it hurt?" he asked and I shook my head.

"Nope, I'm just ready to meet her is all," I told him and kissed his cheek. "Do you have your things to go to Uncle Seth's?" I asked and he nodded his head. "You and Maddie can come up to the hospital as soon as I get settled okay?"

"We won't miss anything will we?" he asked, checking again after already having asked numerous times before.

"No, sweetie, you won't. Once Daddy and I get to the hospital and I get checked out, you and Maddie can come in the room for awhile. Then, when it's time for her to be born, you'll wait with the others until she gets here," I told him and ran my fingers through his hair.

"What if she needs me?" he asked protectively and I couldn't help but sniff at that, too. He was so loving, and so much like Edward it was scary...but in a good way.

I wrapped my arm around him and pulled him against me, kissing the top of his head. "Mase, she'll always need you, but I'm pretty sure Dr. Hughes, the nurses, and Daddy will take care of her and me until you can come see both of us."

"'Kay," he said quietly as he kicked his legs against the side of the bed.

Edward walked back in the room, holding Maddie's hand and asked, "We all ready to go have a baby?" He was smiling so big and bounced up and down on the balls of his feet in his excitement.

I nodded my head and noticed he already had my bag over his shoulder. "I got it, baby. You ready?"

"Yep, we better get going," I said, sounding much calmer than I felt on the inside.

"Mommy, she's gonna be here soon!" Maddie exclaimed happily and I grinned at her.

"Hopefully really soon," I answered back and growled at Edward when he chuckled.

"Don't count on it, Bella," he told me as he reached for my hand.

"Shortcake!" Seth bellowed when he came through the front door...without knocking.

Maddie and Masen ran up to him and each pulled on his arm as they jumped up and down. "Uncle Seth, Mama's gonna have the baby!" Masen shouted.

"Yeah? What's her name gonna be?" he teased and Masen narrowed his eyes at him.

"Nice try, Uncle Seth, but you're gonna have to wait just like everyone else," Masen told him with a chuckle.

Seth reached over and ruffled his hair and said, "Damn, kid, you are good." He looked at me and his eyes softened and if I wasn't mistaken, were a bit on the watery side, too. "Hey, sweetheart, you hanging in there?" he asked as he made his way over to me and bent down to kiss the top of my head. "I can't believe you're about to have a baby," he said in an awed voice.

I heard Edward chuckle beside me and squeeze my hand and he said, "Well, she's going to have it right here if we don't get her to the hospital. You can get all sappy and shit with her once she's in a room, hooked up to a monitor."

"Right, hospital," Seth murmured and then grinned at me. "See you in a bit. Love you, Bell."

"Let's hit it, baby. Time to bring our daughter into the world," Edward said as he pulled me out of the door.

We made it to the hospital without any problems but my contractions started to come in a bit closer intervals. Even though Bree was not a Labor/Delivery nurse, she met us at the door with a wheelchair once Edward had helped me from the car.

"Bella, Edward, I'm so excited for you guys!" Bree said with a big smile plastered on her face.

"Hey Bree!" I said with a wave and then sat in the chair to be taken up to the Maternity floor.

Edward held my hand and began breathing with me when another contraction hit and I looked up at him. "About five, six minutes apart, baby. This is definitely it," he said with a smile.

I was taken directly into a room, thanks to Edward having filled out all the paperwork already. Once I was set up in a bed, the nurses took my blood pressure, got me hooked up to an IV, and then got the monitor hooked up to check the baby's heartbeat. Everything looked good and I let out a relieved breath. Soon after, Travis walked in the room. "My favorite patient," he beamed and bent over the bed to give me a hug and then held his hand out to shake Edward's. "Just didn't want to get induced, did she?" he asked with a wink and Edward snorted and shook his head.

"Crazy woman was up this morning making pancakes," he answered him back and then smirked at me.

"Well, let's see what we're dealing with and then settle in to get this baby delivered," Travis said as he did a quick exam. "Everything looks really good. Bella, you're about five centimeters dilated and close to sixty percent effaced. We'll definitely have a baby before the day is done." He looked at us both with a smile. "We're still going with the natural childbirth plan, right? No meds unless absolutely necessary?" he questioned and I nodded my head.

"Bella, are you sure?" Edward anxiously asked. I knew he hated to see me suffer, but I didn't want to take any chances. I knew having an epidural was perfectly safe, but I wanted to try to do this if I could without it.

I nodded my head. "Edward, it'll be fine. If it gets to be too much, I promise I'll tell you."

"Well, I'll be keeping a close watch. If I see any indication of stress on either you or the baby, we'll need to decide on an alternative, but for now, you're both doing great!" Travis said and rubbed his hands together.

I had to admit it; it was really nice to have a doctor so invested in making sure things went according to plan.

The monitor started to beep and I knew that meant another contraction was coming so I reached out and grabbed Edward's hand. "I'm right here," he said then breathed with me as it crested and then gradually receded.

"Damn," I muttered and then looked at Edward.

"Anytime you want something for the pain, just give me the word," he told me but I took a few deep breaths and shook my head.

"I can do it," I told him and he leaned down to kiss me.

"You sure the hell can. You're the strongest person I know, my love."

"Can you see if the others are here yet? I want to see Mad and Mase and I'd like to see Rose if she's here," I told him. I had called her as soon as I'd gotten off the phone with Seth. I'd hoped that by the time we got admitted and situated in a room, she'd be here since she was only a little over an hour away.

He left and I had another contraction. It was a lot harder to breathe through it without Edward helping me, that was for sure.

"Mommy!" Maddie exclaimed as she rushed to the side of the bed. "What's all that for?" she asked once she noticed the machine and the IV and when her eyes began to water, I looked at Edward quickly so he would explain to her.

"Princess, it's just to make sure Mommy and the baby are okay. It doesn't hurt either one of them, I promise. Mommy's okay and so is your sister," he told her after he'd given her a reassuring hug.

"Mama, you're sure you're okay?" Masen asked as he reached out and touched my hand with the IV in it.

"I'm fine, little man, promise. Daddy will make sure nothing happens. Your sister will be here before we know it," I told him and then held my arms open for a Masen hug. There were few things better in the world than a hug from him.

"Bella!" Rose cried out as she raced into the room with Emmett right on her heels. "You doing well so far?"

I started to answer her, but another contraction was coming so I let out a hiss and grabbed Edward's hand. "Breathe, Bella. That's it, in and out," he calmly said he rubbed my stomach and breathed along with me. "Almost done. There you go," he said with a smile and kissed me on the forehead.

"Sweet B, gotta say, you are the shit," Emmett said as he shook his head in wonderment. "Rosie, I'm so ready for this."

"Yeah, well that's because all you have to do is breathe with me, you big jerk. Bella and I are the ones that are going to have do all the work," Rose answered him with a glare. "Drugs, is all I'm saying. You better make sure I have lots and lots of drugs," she warned him and plopped down on a chair in the corner.

I rubbed my stomach once the contraction stopped and looked at my best friend. "It's really not so bad, Le. If I can do it, so can you."

"You're Superwoman, Bella, married to Superman. I've got...well him," Rose said and pointed to Emmett who was sporting the Cullen pout as good as one I'd ever seen from Edward.

"Hey!" Em said, clearly affronted at the insult and Rose smiled sweetly at him.

"Em, I'm just teasing. You're going to be an amazing father. But, I mean it; I don't want to feel any pain...at all. If I'm having a baby, I'm having it the way I want."

The room was soon flooded with the rest of the family, including Father O'Connor who came as soon as Mass was over.

"Bella, dear, well, I suppose this is as good a reason as any I've seen to miss Mass on a Sunday morning," he cheerily said and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

"We were going to come, I promise," I answered him back and he smiled at me.

"I know, sweetheart. How about we say a quick prayer for things to go well and then we'll get out of here and let you and Edward do your thing?" he asked and I nodded, extremely grateful. There was never a thing as too many prayers.

**EPOV**

The next few hours passed with the contractions getting steadily closer together and steadily increasing in intensity. It sucked like hell watching Bella's face scrunch in pain every few minutes, but she was adamant about trying to deliver without any medication for pain.

My wife was a hell of a woman, that was all I had to say. There was none of that screaming nonsense, none of that cursing me to hell and back or threatening any of my body parts. She just kept breathing and squeezing my hand and I kept telling her what a good job she was doing and how proud I was of her.

Rose, Mama, and Sue would periodically poke their heads in to see how we were doing, but for the most part we were left alone…and I was perfectly fine with that. I knew they were all there if we needed them, and that was a good feeling, but we didn't need nor want a room full of people watching our every move.

"Do you want me to rub your back?" I asked after a particularly hard contraction.

Bella sagged against me and nodded her head. "Yeah, please."

"You got it, baby," I told her and ran my hand over her lower back, trying to ease as much of the pain as I could. "I'm so fucking proud of you. You're doing amazing," I whispered against her temple and kissed her.

"Well, I don't know about that," she chuckled softly, "but I do know that what you're doing right now feels really damn good."

"Well, we've passed the point of being able to help with the pain, so whatever I can do to help, I will," I answered her.

The last time Travis had been in to check on Bella, she was past seven centimeters dilated and more than seventy percent effaced which meant that if things kept on the pace she was now, our little girl would be here in just a few more hours.

I couldn't help but slide my hand around her naked hip and rubbed circles on her hipbone and then I kissed her softly on the side of her neck. "How does that feel?" I asked with a smirk and was rewarded with a gentle sigh.

"That feels good, too," she whispered and laid her head against my shoulder.

I listened to the monitor and knew a contraction was building and at just that time, Travis walked in the room with a nurse and Tanya. "Breathe, Bella, that's it baby…in and out," I panted with her, just like we had been taught in Lamaze class.

Travis walked over the printouts and looked at me with a smile. "Things are progressing fabulously, Bella and Edward. So far no undue stress on either Ladybug or Bella and I'm guessing things will start moving along quickly here in the next little bit."

"Great," Bella muttered and we all laughed at her.

"Sorry, Angel," I said with a grin when she narrowed her eyes at me. Too fucking adorable for her own good, I tell ya.

"Edward, you might want to go get changed into your scrubs and we'll start getting things ready in here. I would imagine within the hour your little girl will be here," Travis said once he finished examining Bella again. "She's more than nine centimeters now and almost a hundred percent effaced, so the show is about to begin."

There was a flurry of motion in the room as the nurses moved things into place. "I'll be right back," I told Bella as I stood up to go change in the bathroom. My heart was beating a hundred miles a minute and my stomach was tied in so many knots it was a wonder I could swallow or breathe at all.

This was it; I couldn't believe it was finally here, I thought to myself as I stripped out of my clothes and put my scrubs on. Our little girl was about to be here and I said a quick prayer that nothing went wrong.

By the time I made it back to Bella's side, everyone was in place and we were about to get started.

"Okay, Bella," Travis said after getting a nod from the nurse holding the printouts. "The contractions are coming one on top of the other now, so we're going to do a test push and then get started," he said once he was in place.

My heart felt like it was about to burst out of my chest at his words and I knew this was really, really fucking it. "Edward, if you'll help her sit up just a bit, we'll do a practice push," Travis instructed and I moved to sit behind Bella so that I could help her.

"I love you," I whispered to her and kissed her quickly on her cheek, taking a deep breath to steel myself for what was about to come. The thought of Bella being in pain was like a knife into my heart, but I would be by her side, helping her every moment. She was my everything, and in just a little bit, our lives would be changed forever.

"Love you, too," she breathed out in between a contraction as we waited for Travis.

"Okay, Bella, now when I say go, I want you to push like you were taught in Lamaze class, okay? Nice and hard, for a full ten seconds."

She nodded and I wrapped my arm around her back to support her as she pushed. "Now, Bella," Travis said and we began to count, "One, two….that's it baby, so good...five, six….almost there…and nine, ten," I counted.

"Great job, Bella," Travis praised her. "Just like that from now on, okay?"

Bella blew out a few breaths and I reached up with the hand that wasn't around her back to push her hair out of her face. "I'm so proud of you. You're doing such a good job," I told her and kissed her nose.

The nurses stepped up to the bed and each grabbed a knee and helped her scoot down a bit on the bed so she was comfortable…well, as comfortable as she could be. I had to keep reminding myself that the pain wouldn't last too long and that at the end we would be blessed with our beautiful daughter.

"Okay, just like before, Bella. Push down toward my hands, as hard as you can," Travis said and I took another deep breath and began to breathe and count again.

"That's it, Angel….three, four, five…keep going…seven, eight…and great job," I told her once she was done.

We continued on that way for a time and Bella was starting to get tired but I knew it was almost time for the big pushes to bring our daughter into the world.

"She's almost here," I whispered and Travis looked up and nodded in agreement.

"Yep, she is, I can see the top of her head, she has Bella's hair," he told us and I laughed.

"Well, thank God for small favors," I told my wife with a smile, feeling my heart leap…hair…she was almost here!

"Okay, you two, how about we get this baby out?" Travis asked with a smile. "Now, Bella, a few big pushes, but when I say stop, you stop, okay?"

I was in awe of how fucking strong Bella was. I couldn't believe the moment we'd been waiting for was almost here. I couldn't believe how incredible it was to share this with her, to be here for every push and breath…it was the most amazing thing that had ever happened to me.

I took Bella's hand in mine and wrapped my other arm around her. "Let's do this," she whispered and I could only nod my head.

She blew out a few short breaths and pushed with all she had, shaking in my arms as we breathed and she pushed. "That's it, baby," I encouraged and Travis echoed saying, "the head is almost out, Bella, keep going."

With one last grunt, I heard Travis say, "Okay, Bella, wait now." He quickly cleared her nose and mouth and then said, "One more big push, Bella, and she'll be here." Bella pushed, letting out a loud moan and finally, I could see her as Travis helped our daughter slip from her mother's body. And moments later, the sound I would remember for the rest of my life filled the room as our daughter let out a cry.

"Edward, come cut the cord," Travis instructed and I kissed Bella quickly on the forehead and took the small scissors from him and looked at my daughter for the first time.

"She's beautiful, baby," I told Bella as I took in big gulps of air and felt the tears fall down my face. I quickly cut the cord, feeling my heart fill with so much love for my new little girl that it was almost too much. The nurses quickly took her to get her cleaned up and in the next moment brought her back to Bella and me.

"Happy birthday, Ladybug," I whispered against her tiny head as Bella quickly unwrapped her to count fingers and toes.

"She's perfect," Bella breathed out and looked up at me with her eyes full of tears.

"She is. Thank you, Bella. You've given me the greatest gift I ever could have imagined," I told her and reached down to hold my tiny daughter's tiny little fingers.

"I love you, so very much," Bella said softly to our daughter as she nuzzled her nose against her.

Travis approached the side of the bed and laid a hand on Bella's shoulder. "Everything looks really good, you two. Bella, you were a real trooper, I have to hand it to you. Congratulations to you both," he said and bent down to kiss Bella on the cheek. Hell, I was so blissed out, I didn't even growl at the guy.

"I'll be back to check on things in a bit, once you've had a chance to visit with your family," he said before leaving.

"I'm going to go get Mad and Mase, then the others can come in, okay?" I asked as I stood up, feeling torn about leaving her side for even a moment.

"I love you," I told Bella, and went to go get big brother and big sister.

"Daddy!" they shouted when they saw me and everyone's head snapped in my direction.

"She's here and both Mama and baby are perfect," I answered the unasked questions. "Give us just a minute, then you can all come in," I told them and bent down to kiss my mom before grabbing Maddie and Masen's hands. "Come on you two, your baby sister wants to meet you," I said as we walked down the hall and into Bella's room.

"Mama," Masen whispered as he stepped up beside her bed. Bella's eyes had been closed while she rested for a moment and she opened them and smiled at the kids.

"Here she is," Bella said as she held the baby out for them to see.

"She's so tiny," Maddie said softly and reached out to hold her hand. "She is, but she's perfect and healthy and she's going to have the best big brother and big sister ever."

After that there was a light knock on the door as the rest of the family filed in.

"Oh Bella, Edward, she's beautiful," my mom cried and my dad wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

"Come on, Shortcake, tell us her name, we're dying here," Seth said as he winked at her.

Bella looked up at me and I smiled down at her and then ran my finger down my daughter's cheek. "Everyone, we'd like to introduce you to Callie Faith Cullen," I proudly announced.

We were graced with a lot of aww's and it's perfect's and everyone had a turn holding the baby, though it was hard to get Emmett to pass her on to her Aunt Rose. "Babe, can we hurry up and have one?" he whined when he finally handed her over.

Bella began to yawn and at that point everyone said their goodbyes and promised to come back later. It was hard to get Maddie and Masen to leave, but I assured them they would be the first ones to hold the baby when they came back.

"Mama, you better get some rest," I told Bella once the room was quiet again. Callie had fallen asleep in Bella's arms and I knew it wouldn't be long before she would have to try to feed her.

"I just want to stare at her. I can't believe she's finally here," Bella whispered.

"I can't believe how much she looks like you," I replied back, still in awe of it all. Callie had a head full of dark hair and her nose looked exactly like Bella's. Her eyes looked like they might be green like mine; a fact of which Bella was most pleased about.

"She's perfect," Bella said and I bent my head down and rested my cheek on her head.

"Just like her mother. You were amazing," I praised her again.

"We were," Bella corrected and I didn't want to argue so I just nodded my head.

"I can't wait to get you all home," I told her as I wrapped my arm around her, holding her and Callie close to me.

A few days later, I got my wish and sighed a relieved breath when I pulled up in front of the house. The drive back to Lake George was enough to make me want a stiff drink and Bella chuckled at me from the backseat when I flexed my fingers as I unwrapped them from the steering wheel. We left right after lunch on Thursday and like I'd hoped, traffic was very light, a fact of which I was most grateful for. The family was going to come visit on Sunday, and I was happy to have a few days alone with my family.

I got out of the car and handed Maddie and Masen each a bag to carry into the house before helping Bella out of the backseat and then unbuckled the car seat Callie was in to carry her into the house. "We're finally home," I told Bella as we walked through the front door.

Charlotte, on my mother's instructions, had left dinner on the counter and had stocked the refrigerator for us. I smiled when I saw the balloons and basket on the island filled with things for Maddie and Masen so they wouldn't feel left out.

Maddie and Masen grabbed the basket with a giggle and I laughed at how happy they were, even Callie let out a sweet gurgle. It seemed like everyone was happy to be home.

"You feeling okay?" I asked Bella once I shut the door and helped her to the sofa. Bella gave me a tired, but sincere smile and nodded her head.

"I'm fine, sweetheart. A little tired from the long trip, but we're good," she said as she nuzzled Callie.

I helped the kids make some dinner with the fried chicken and sides Charlotte had left and then brought Bella a plate as well. After we ate, we all went upstairs where Bella patiently let Maddie and Masen help her change Callie's diaper and changed her clothes. They were so incredible with their little sister and I was amazed at how loving and calm Bella was with them and the baby as I watched them from the doorway.

This was everything I'd ever wanted; a happy family and a house that was so full of love that the roof could barely contain it all. Bella must have felt me there watching, because she turned her head to look at me and when she smiled in my direction, I literally felt my heart grow as it encompassed all I was feeling. She cocked and eyebrow at me and I lifted my shoulder in a shrug. I blew her a kiss and went to our room to make sure the bassinet was set up. I knew there was no way Bella would let Callie sleep in her own room yet...not that I was any better.

"Here, Daddy, someone wants to visit before bed time," Bella said as she handed me a bundled up and sweet smelling Callie. "I'm going to go read with Mad and Mase for a few minutes before they go to bed," she told me and then kissed my cheek.

"Tell them I'll be in before they go to sleep to say good night," I told her and then focused on my tiny daughter in my arms.

I bent my head down and breathed in the unmistakable baby smell and kissed Callie's forehead. "So what do you think of all this?" I asked her and she stared up at me. "I'm so happy to have you home, Ladybug. You're going to love it here, I know you will. You have the best big brother and sister in the whole world and don't even get me started on how amazing your mommy is," I whispered and curled my finger around her small hand. "She did such a good job bringing you into the world," I told her, my voice shaking as I remembered it all.

"You weren't so bad yourself," my wife said softly from where she stood watching...and obviously listening as well. "The kids fell asleep before I even finished a few pages, they were so tired," she told me and I nodded, sorry I missed saying good night.

Bella pushed off the doorway and crawled up the bed to lay down next to us. She reached her hand out and ran her fingers over her small head. "I'm so happy. I didn't know it was possible to be this happy all the time," she said in voice that underscored just how much she believed that.

"Angel, we are going to be so happy, we'll make people sick with how happy we are," I told her with a smug grin and a wink.

"I love you, Edward," she said as she reached up to run her fingers over my cheek.

"As I love you, sweet girl. Always and forever," I said back and curled up on the bed with my newest daughter while her brother and sister slept in their rooms down the hall.

I had more than any man should ever have, but I'd be damned if I felt bad about it.

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Well, our little ladybug Callie Faith is here...what did you all think of it? I hope you enjoyed it and it was everything you hoped it would be. **

**I'm not sure when the next outtake will be posted. I'm hoping to get 2 done for you all before Christmas and I'm going to do my best to get it done. I have some great ideas for the next one! I'm guessing 2 weeks for it to be finished. Keep an eye out on the blog for posting information! I'll post a teaser on Fictionators and on the story itself when I have it ready. **

**BIG NEWS! The Path We Choose was nominated (a HUGE thank you to the wonderful person who did it!) for four...4! Awards in the Sparkleteer Rare Gem Awards! TPWC was nominated for Best Cliffhanger, Best Kiss, Best Tearjerker, and (I'm SOOO proud of this one!) Best Lemon! If you'd like to vote, and you can vote every day...you can check out all the nominations - including the fabulous rtgirl's Cotton Creek- at:**

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**A very , VERY special thank you to all of you who have followed me to my new story! You have no idea how much that means to me! Your support and response has been out of this world and more than I ever imagined or expected. For those that haven't taken a look at it yet, please do so. This one is pretty special to me! It's called _The Greatest Gift_ and it is listed on my profile. A new chapter was posted today.**

**One last thing, check out my profile for the link to the Fandom for Preemies Fundraiser that I am participating in. I've already submitted my wedding outtake from Maddie/Masen POV and there are works by 120+ authors that can be yours for a $5 donation to the March of Dimes. If you need more info, send me an email or a PM…I'll be happy to answer any questions you have. Donations are accepted through Dec. 1st.**

**That's it people! Let me know what you thought of it and I'll see you soon with the next outtake!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: SM owns Twilight. No copyright infringement is intended.**

**HI Everyone! Surprise...it's the next outtake -and not on a Sunday either! I got it finished and wanted to get it up right away. We've moved forward in time to see something you've all asked for, and I hope you like it! No drama in this one, just happy, fluffy times...just in time for the holidays! So, I hope it gets you in the Christmas spirit! **

**Thanks as always to Laurel who got this ready in record time and to Jen and Becky for letting me bounce ideas off them.**

**Lemon Alert...as if you didn't know THAT was coming! **

**Enjoy...see you at the bottom~**

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Outtake # 3 – Boyfriends and Girlfriends**

**EPOV**

"Son of a bitch," I muttered under my breath as I pulled up in my driveway and glared at HIS car parked in my spot.

I huffed and yanked my briefcase off the front seat beside me and pushed open my door, slamming it behind me in my aggravation. I tried to take a few deep breaths before I walked in the house, because if Bella saw me all bent out of shape...again, she was going to hand my ass to me...again.

Gripping the doorknob on the door from the garage to the kitchen, I tried to give myself a pep talk. "It's fine, Edward...he's just a kid, maybe he's here to hang out with Masen...maybe Masen can accidentally, on purpose, bean him in the arm or something if we go outside and throw the baseball around. Maybe I should have Seth come up here and scare the shit out of him...maybe I should have Sheriff Lancaster take his license away, he loves me...well, he loves Bella, but he likes me, too...I think."

"Fuck," I hissed again and then opened the door.

"Daddy!" came the happy voice of the little person who had their arms wrapped around my legs, stopping me from taking one more step.

I dropped my briefcase on the floor and swung the little one up in my arms and felt him wrap his tiny arms around my neck and squeeze for all he was worth.

"I missded fu todays," my three-year-old Eli told me as he squished my face with his hands.

Smiling, I blew a raspberry on his cheek and said, "I missded you, too, little man. Did you and Mommy have a good day?"

Eli nodded and smiled a big, toothy, gummy smile. He wiggled in my arms and I set him down on the ground and with a tiny swat on his bottom, watched him scamper off to find...who knew what. The kid was into everything...and I meant everything. Bella's cooking things, Maddie's makeup, Masen's baseball gloves; anything he found laying around was fair game as far as he was concerned.

I smiled as I turned around to grab a beer out of the fridge before I faced the rest of the family...well, before I faced my oldest daughter...and him.

I heard Eli happily banging his Duplo blocks together and immediately thought about how much our lives had changed since Ladybug had been born. It seemed like from the moment she arrived, our lives had been on warp speed.

To say we had been ecstatic...and surprised when Bella found out she was pregnant with Eli, would be an understatement. Callie had turned two and Rose and Emmett's daughter Lucy had just turned one and we were having Sunday dinner at Mama and Pop's when I found Bella curled around the toilet in the bathroom. One look at her, and I knew she was pregnant. We stayed an extra day and went to see Travis in the morning before heading back to Lake George and he confirmed my Bella was indeed pregnant again.

Her pregnancy with Eli didn't go quite as smoothly as it had with Callie, at least in terms of pregnancy symptoms. She had morning, afternoon, and night sickness, she was way more tired...and irritable than she ever was with Callie. It was pretty awful to watch her be sick like she was, but she took it all like a trooper, and never, well hardly ever, complained. My wife was an amazing woman, that was for damn sure, but she wasn't a saint either.

Eli was such a blessing though, and one that made our lives fuller than I ever could have imagined. He looked almost exactly like me, except he had Bella's brown eyes and luckily for all of us, he had her calm demeanor as well. He was an amazing kid and there was little I loved more than coming home day after day and finding out what new thing he had learned that day.

He adored his mother, not that I could have blamed him in the least, but when I say he was her shadow, I meant that literally. Bella could barely take two steps without Eli following right behind her.

"Elliot Andrew Cullen!" Bella shrieked as she came down the stairs... carrying one of Callie's mangled dolls, and from the looks of it, it died a slow, painful death. My little girl followed behind her mother, sniffling, and when I looked at my precocious son, he had a sheepish look on his face.

"Little man, you know better than to play with things that aren't yours," I told him as I set my beer down on the counter and walked over to where he was and picked him up.

"Edward," Bella sighed when she got closer to me and blew her hair out of her face with a huff of breath.

"Hey, baby," I told her with a smile and leaned forward to give her a kiss.

Well, apparently Eli wanted in on the action because he reached his arms out and grabbed her around the neck, causing her to giggle, even though she really tried not to.

She pulled him from me and hitched our son on her hip and rubbed her nose against his cheek, his sweet giggle filling the room. "What am I going to do with you, Eli?" she asked and then looked at me, like I had the answer.

I shrugged my shoulders at her. "He's your kid, Angel," I said with a smirk and walked back over to pick up my beer.

She snorted at me and with a glare she said, "So, he's mine when he's being rotten, but he's yours when he's behaving? Nice, Edward."

"Sounds fair to me, especially because I keep being told to just deal with _him_," I sneered and pointed in the direction of the dining room where my princess was doing homework with her boyfriend. The word gave me the chills and seriously threatened to turn me into a knife-wielding homicidal maniac. Maybe not quite that extreme, but it was really fucking close.

How the hell was my little girl old enough to have a boyfriend...and all that THAT entailed?

She set Eli down on the ground with a kiss and then turned to look at me with her hands on her hips. That was never a good sign. I grinned at her and tried to give her a pout, but she didn't even crack a smile. Shit.

"Edward, really. Wesley is a very nice boy. You should try to be nicer to him. You'll upset Maddie if you keep acting like such a caveman," she told me and judging from the tone of her voice, she was on the verge of getting really pissed off at me.

"Do I need to remind you of how a certain someone, who happens to look exactly like you, reacted the first time Masen had a girlfriend over to the house?" I taunted as I walked toward her. I smirked, like the know-it-all pain in the ass she loved so much, and raised my eyebrows at her, daring her to challenge the truth of what I said.

My smirk turned into a full-fledged shit-eating grin when I saw the corners of her mouth lift ever so slightly. Of course the telltale sign that she didn't want to admit I was right was the roll of her gorgeous brown eyes.

"I hate you. You are such an ass," she huffed and then giggled.

I stepped even closer to her and reached for her hands and then pulled her against me. I draped my arms over her shoulders and bent my head down so that I could kiss her behind her ear. When she sighed softly, I tried not to chuckle, but she was just so predictable. "Bella, we've been married more than six years now, don't you think I'd know where your spot was?" I teased her as I sucked even harder on the tender skin. "And you don't hate me, Jellybean, you love me and you know it." I growled and pulled her even closer to me and slid my hands through her hair and held the back of her head. Tipping her face up to mine, I lowered my lips to hers and kissed her deeply.

No one had ever accused me of fighting fair!

When I was done kissing her, and I only stopped to keep from attacking her in the kitchen in front of way too many kids, I kissed her on the end of the nose and stepped back. "No, I guess after a kiss like that I can't say I hate you, KitKat, but really, you have to lay off Maddie about Wesley. I had to do the same thing with Angelica, and if I'm not mistaken, Mr. Smartass, you," she said as she stuck her finger in the middle of my chest, "told me over and over again that it was just a part of Masen growing up and I would have to learn how to deal with it." She crooked one eyebrow and dared me to contradict her, which no matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't do it.

Damn woman knew me inside and out, and she never, fucking ever, forgot anything I said, either. Made it harder than hell to dig myself out of the holes I continually found myself in.

_**Flashback~**_

_I'd gotten home from work, early for a change, and walked into the house and like I always did, looked immediately for Bella. I heard laughing from downstairs in the game room so I knew the kids were down there, but I didn't see my wife anywhere. I noticed the door to the deck open, which was odd, as it was early February and it was still damn cold outside. Thinking one of the kids had forgotten to shut the door, I walked over to shut it when I noticed Bella sitting on the chaise, wrapped up in a heavy blanket._

_"Baby?" I called to her softy, and sucked in a sharp breath when I saw that the tip of her nose was red and so were her eyes...and it wasn't due to the cold weather either._

_"Oh shit, Edward, I didn't hear you come home," she said quickly and wiped her face with her hands in an attempt to keep me from seeing she'd been crying. She should have known better. When it came to her, nothing got past me, especially if something had upset her._

_She moved to get up, but I quickly walked to the chaise and sat down next to her. I picked her up and set her on my lap, just like always. "Now, my sweet girl, you can try to hide that beautiful face from me," I said softly since she had buried her head against my chest, "but you know I'm stubborn enough to let us both freeze out here, so why don't you save us both the trouble and go ahead and tell me what has you so upset?"_

_She sniffed and reached for my left hand and played with my wedding ring and my fingers, again a habit and one that if it fell by the wayside, I would miss greatly. "You're going to laugh at me," she said and I chuckled and squeezed my arms around her._

_"Bella, I would never laugh at anything that caused you to cry," I told her and kissed the side of her head. "Now, come on, tell me."_

_She sighed and shifted on my lap and said quietly, "Masen has a friend over."_

_"Oookaaay," I dragged out because, honestly, in a million years I wouldn't have guessed those five words would have come out of her mouth. "And, this is a problem, why?"_

_Bella huffed again, this time it was followed by what I would swear was a growl. What the hell? "Bella? What's wrong, don't you like the kid? Masen usually just hangs out with the guys from the baseball team and we know all of them. Did some new guy join the team or something?" I asked totally confused._

_"No, there isn't a new boy on his baseball team, unless Coach Henderson started letting people with the name Angelica on the team," she said with a sneer...and an adorably scrunched up nose._

_"Wait, what? Masen has a girl over? Is that what is going on?" I asked as I tried to catch up to what she was saying._

_Bella sat up straighter and glared at me. "Yes, Edward, Masen has a girl over. His girlfriend," she said and even did that whole finger thing to make quotations around the word. She scrambled off my lap and began to pace around the deck. "Do you know he wants to get her a Valentine's Day present? I mean, what the hell? He only just met the little jezebel and now he wants to buy her presents?"_

_I tried to cough and hide my chuckle behind my hand, because damn, the woman was on a tear, but I didn't do such a good job because she whipped her head around and pinned me with a cold stare. _

_"Are you laughing at me, Edward?" she growled and I shook my head, even though I knew she could tell I was dying to laugh on the inside. _

_"Jezebel? Really, Bella? The girl is only fifteen-years-old, unless my boy was lucky enough to find himself an older woman," I teased her, but then bit back a laugh when I saw the true unease on her face. "Baby, come on, what is bothering you so much? He's almost fifteen; he's going to like girls. He's a good-looking kid, just like his old man. You had to know this was going to happen sooner or later," I reminded her and her shoulders sagged and then she plopped down beside me and crossed her arms._

_"I know, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. It's been me and him, you know?" she said softly. "I know this might seem silly, but it's like I'm losing him," she said even more softly and sniffed. _

_I scooted closer to her and wrapped my arm around her shoulder and kissed the top of her head. "Isabella Marie Cullen, our son thinks the sun rises and sets on you, and nothing will ever change how he feels about you. Certainly not some fifteen-year-old jezebel," I teased and bumped her knee with mine."You're his hero, Mama, and you and I both know he loves you more than anyone, even me."_

_"He still loves Callie most of all," she said with a smile and I couldn't help but snort at that. No truer statement had ever been said. _

_"He couldn't love anyone more than Ladybug," I agreed with a chuckle but then got serious. "Bella, they're growing up, finding out who they are, and spreading their wings. It's what they're supposed to do. We've raised them to be great kids, but you're going to have to start letting him go."_

_"I know, but I don't want to," Bella said with a sigh. _

_"Well, Mase, will always be a Mama's boy, just like his dad is, and there is nothing wrong with that. Let's just hope he lucks out in the wife department like I did," I laughed._

_Bella stood up and looked at me. "Well, no one will ever be good enough for my boy." _

_I threw my head back and laughed because really, she was just too fucking cute, but the next words out of her mouth were like a bucket of ice water. _

_"Oh and sweetheart, you better remember this conversation when it's Maddie that comes home with a boyfriend," she said with a wink before she blew me a kiss and walked into the house, leaving me still as a statue._

_**End of Flashback~**_

Motherfucker, if it always didn't happen that my words came back to bite me in my own ass!

I huffed, really fucking hating that she was right, as usual, and I was wrong. "Fine," I said as I hung my head. "I'll try to be nicer to the boy."

"Well, you can practice at dinner because he's eating with us," she said cheekily and then walked to the kitchen to finish up making the food.

"Son of a bitch," I muttered to which Bella called out, "I heard that, Edward. Go find Masen; he has something he wants to tell you."

I took another drink of my beer and went in search of my son. I found him in the living room, unsurprisingly with Callie at his feet coloring in a coloring book.

"Mase, look," she said sweetly up at him and he of course, being wound completely around her finger, he stopped the conversation he was having on the phone and looked at her picture. "Great job, Cal," he said and kissed the top of her head.

I had to say, watching the two of them together always did something to me. We had an incredibly close family, and Bella and I were happier than anyone really had a right to be, but there was something so special about the bond Masen and Callie had with each other. I couldn't even put it into words if I tried, but anyone that looked at them together would be able to see it. It was unlike anything I'd ever seen before. He and Maddie were as close as any two people could be, seeing as how they were twins and all, but even granting that, Masen and Callie...were just more.

"Hi, Daddy!" my little girl giggled when she saw me watching her. She hopped up off the floor and ran to me and jumped into my arms.

"How is my Ladybug today?" I asked and rubbed my chin against her soft skin once I'd lifted her up.

She laughed and wiggled in my arms. "You're scruffy! I had a good day; we got to play with clay in art. It was fun! But, Eli broke my doll," she said with a pout.

"Well, next time we go see Nana and Papa, we'll just have to get you a new one, won't we?" I asked which got an enthusiastic nod in response.

"Why don't you go see if you can help Mommy with dinner and let me talk to Mase for a few minutes?" I asked her and then kissed her on the head and watched her run off.

"Thanks, Uncle J," I heard Masen say into his cell phone once I got to sit down. I kicked my feet up onto the coffee table, even though Bella would slap me silly if she caught me, and waited for him to get through with his phone call.

I smiled as I remembered how upset I used to get whenever Masen would go to Jasper first with things. Once Callie was born, and I became Dad instead of Daddy, Masen and Jasper had gotten extremely close. The first time he had a problem, I couldn't even remember what it was now, and went to Jasper instead of me, I had been devastated. It took a stern talking to from my Mama to put things into perspective for me.

She reminded when I was his age and even as I got older, there were a lot of times I had gone to Uncle Marcus first with a problem instead of straight to my dad. He was my go-to guy, always had been. I always had Emmett and Demetri, and I knew there was nothing I couldn't tell either one of my parents, but Uncle Marcus was...different. Once I got over acting like a baby, I realized I was really happy that Masen had the same thing with Jasper.

It kind of surprised me it was Jasper he went to and not Emmett or Demetri as he'd been around them his whole life, or even Seth who was Bella's best friend and so laid back. But, when I really stopped and thought about it, it made perfect sense. Both were completely devoted to Bella, both had that calm, cool demeanor about them, and both were fiercely loyal and protective of their family.

Masen laughed at something Jasper said and looked at me and grinned. "Yeah, I'll tell him. Tell Uncle Em and Seth thanks for the email with the new workout in it. I'll give it a try. I need a few more miles an hour on my fastball according to Coach, so the arm exercises will help."

He listened to whatever Jasper said in response and then finished up. "Sounds good, Uncle J. Give my love to Aunt Ali and the twins. See you soon."

Yes, since Bella and I had escaped twin-free, and we weren't planning on having any more kids, Jasper and Alice were the lucky ones to be blessed with having the next set. My niece and nephew, Olivia and Owen, were born around the same time as Eli. Let me tell you, having Bella and Alice pregnant at the same time, and Rose with Lucy in between Callie and Eli, it was baby central in our family for a while there.

Unfortunately, Seth and Tanya, who had gotten married after Eli was born, hadn't had much luck in conceiving. Mine and Bella's best friends were not handling it too well to be honest, and we were all getting worried. There was nothing medically wrong with either of them, it just hadn't happened yet and it seemed like the more we all tried to tell them it would happen when it was supposed to, the worse it got. They were under a lot of strain right now and I knew I'd spent as much time on the phone talking to one or the other of them as often as Bella had.

All we could do was hope and continue to pray that they were strong enough to weather the storm they were in. I thought, and Bella agreed with me, that part of the problem was that Seth had been so ready to get married when we had and Tanya had wanted to wait. She wanted to get married; she just didn't want it to be right then. Eventually they came to a compromise and had a small, but very elegant wedding in the summer. It was a destination wedding and we'd all gone to Hawaii for the ceremony and then we all stayed for a week after.

Things hadn't been easy for them, but I knew they'd be fine. I hated that they were having so much trouble right now, but I had no doubt there would be a baby for them, I just hoped it was soon. For all our sakes.

Masen threw his phone on the table by my feet and leaned back. "Hey, Dad. Did you know what's his name was here?" he asked and I couldn't help but chuckle. Seemed like I wasn't the only one who didn't like the kid. My son was so damn smart sometimes!

I grunted and looked at him. "Damn kid parked in my spot...again."

"I swear I don't know what Mad sees in him. I know he's artsy like she is, but still, the guy is just..." he said and shook his head. "Callie better not ever like anyone like that, or else you'll be visiting me in jail instead of watching me on the diamond."

I had to laugh at that. I didn't doubt for a second he wasn't kidding either. Callie would be lucky if she ever got to date, though I was kind of all for that, too, but Masen looked positively sick just thinking about it.

Wesley wasn't a bad kid, really, if I was being objective. He was just...odd. Too smooth, too polite...too perfect. No edge to him whatsoever and I supposed most dads would be happy about that, but I wasn't most dads. It just wasn't natural, in my opinion anyway, to be that perfect all the time. Made me wonder why he worked so hard. I supposed, if was being one hundred percent honest, another part of the reason I had a problem with him was he didn't play sports...at all.

Maddie was an incredible artist and her talent had only grown as she'd gotten older. She had huge portfolios of all her work and Mama had already started showing her work to established artists in the city. However, she still loved soccer just as much as she always had and Bella and Jasper both insisted she was better than Bella ever had been. I wasn't so sure about that, having watched every tape of every game Bella had, numerous times, but I tended to be a bit biased... even against my own daughter. Bella had been something you saw only very rarely, that ultimate combination of skill, intuition, and fearlessness. I had not one doubt that if she hadn't had her dream ripped away from her the way she had, she'd have been world famous, the stuff that graced the cover of _Sports Illustrated_ and I didn't mean as a supermodel either.

I knew Maddie was only almost fifteen and it wasn't like she would end up with him for the rest of her life, God forbid, but I didn't want her to give up anything for anyone. Soccer was important to her, and as long as it was, whomever she chose to spend time needed to respect that. Because Wesley didn't play any kind of sports, he didn't understand the dedication and the amount of time she had to practice, even when it wasn't soccer season.

As I'd come to find out over the years, there was no off-season to speak of when it came to soccer; at least not when you played at the level she was at. Between her Academy team and playing for school, and tournaments, soccer went on all year. Maddie used her art as a way to let off steam and to relax, and she was damn good at it, too, but for right now, soccer was where her passion laid.

"He's just odd," I answered Masen finally, and he nodded in agreement. "So how is Jasper? And what was that I heard about a new workout?" I questioned.

"Uncle J is fine, so are Aunt Ali and the twins. He said they were catching up to Eli on the getting into everything phase, but I told him no way. No kid could ever be as bad as Swoop at finding things and taking them to who knows where." Masen chuckled and I laughed.

Swoop was the name Mase and Callie had come up with for their little brother when one time too many he'd taken something of theirs and then couldn't remember where he'd put it. Of course, the kid was only three and they knew better than to leave anything they wanted to keep track of laying around, but the nickname seemed to have stuck and I had to admit it fit him pretty well, too. He sure as hell swooped in and picked up anything anyone left behind and took it to parts unknown.

"And the workout," he began and sat up and bent over to rest his elbows on his knees. "Uncle Em and Seth found this new exercise for me to use to build up the muscles in my upper arms which is gonna come in handy because Coach is starting me this weekend," he said with a smile.

"Holy shit, Mase!" I exclaimed once the words sunk in. "That's fantastic," I told him and slapped him on the back. "Starting Varsity pitcher and only a Freshman, unfuckingbelievable," I said, mostly to myself. "I'm so proud of you."

He sat back and ran his hands through his hair and looked so much like me right then that I lost my breath for a second. He was such an amazing kid, and I was in awe of him on a daily basis. He made good grades, worked hard, devoted the time necessary to be the great ball player he was...and he was the best son and brother anyone could have ever asked for.

"So fucking proud," I told him again.

"Thanks, Dad. Coach said I've looked really good in practice the last few weeks so he wants to give me a shot. I just hope I don't mess up," he told me and I was shaking my head before he'd even finished the sentence.

"Mase, you'll be fine. You have worked hard. Don't stress yourself out about it; you just do your thing," I told him, remembering my own playing days. I wasn't even close to as good a baseball player as he was, even by the time I'd finished high school. "Jasper knows already?" I asked, assuming he'd already told him, which meant that Emmett knew...which surely meant that everyone else in the family knew, too.

Forty damn years old and the man still couldn't keep anything to himself!

"Yeah, he knows, but I didn't call to tell him first," Masen hurried to explain, and I shook my head at him.

"Mase, it's okay if you did. At least you told me before your mother," I teased him and he smiled at that.

He sighed and got quiet which was never a good sign. "You want to tell me what you did call to talk to him about? I mean if you don't want to, it's okay, but you know you can tell me anything."

"Ah, it's not really that big of a deal now that I think about it," he dismissed with a wave of his hand. "Angelica broke up with me because she demanded I stop hanging out with Emily and I told her no. I just wanted to ask Uncle J if that happened a lot to him and Seth when they were my age because of how close they were to Mama."

I chuckled, because Jasper and Seth sure would know what it was like. "Well, you could have asked me the same question, you know. I had more than my fair share of girls that didn't take too kindly to my friendship with Tanya over the years."

"Oh, crap, I didn't even think about that, Dad. Sorry. So, tell me, how did you deal with it? Em's like Mad you know, I mean she's my best friend. I'm not giving her up for anyone," he stated adamantly and again I was so impressed with him.

I had a hell of a kid, no doubt about it...even though I guessed Bella deserved as much credit as I did for how he turned out.

Shrugging my shoulders, I didn't have any words of wisdom really. "You just keep doing what you're doing, Mase. Emily is like family; you've known her for almost half your life now. You just have to realize a lot of girls are going to be intimidated by how close the two of you are. You have to let them know up front you're only friends with her...I mean you are only friends with her, right?" I questioned.

"Yes," he huffed. "Why does everyone ask me that all the freaking time?"

Chuckling, I bumped his shoulder with mine and said, "Just checking, buddy. It's hard for people to understand that a guy and a girl can really just be friends without all that other stuff getting in the way. Who knows, you may change your mind about Emily somewhere down the road."

"Hmph, maybe. Anyway, Uncle J said they'd come up and watch the game, which means that Aunt Rose and Uncle Em will be here...and who knows who else. Nana and Papa are already here, so it looks like we'll be having a family get-together this weekend. Hopefully Mad leaves what's his name at home," he said with a shudder.

"Mad wasn't too crazy about Angelica either, so maybe she's just paying you back," I told him as we stood up to go have dinner.

He slapped me on the back and said, "Well, at least Wesley hasn't been called anything like jezebel."

I stopped dead in my tracks and looked at him. "You knew about that?" I asked incredulously, but I couldn't stop from laughing. Bella really wasn't very subtle in her displeasure about Masen's choice of first serious girlfriend, that was for sure.

"Heck yes!" he smirked. "Mama didn't hide her feelings very well. I can't wait to tell her about what happened today, she'll be happy."

I wrapped my arm around him and said, "No joke. She really didn't like her at all."

Dinner was fine, even though my fingers hurt from gripping my fork so tightly while I ate. Every time I looked up, Wesley and Maddie were making goo-goo eyes at each other and it took all I had, plus a few pointed looks from my beautiful wife, to keep from lunging across the table and wringing his perfect neck.

Bella was ecstatic to hear about the demise of Angelica and Masen and did a shitty job of trying to appear the least bit sympathetic. It was a good thing Mase wasn't all that serious about her or else he might have been upset. Apparently Angelica hadn't made the best impression on Callie either because when she heard the news, she gave him a big hug and kiss.

The boy finally went home after dinner, I still didn't like that he could drive and had his own car, and Masen told the rest of them his news about starting the game this weekend. Everyone was really excited for him and even more excited when they found out that most of the family was coming up for the big debut. I knew how nervous he would be, but I also knew how happy he was and how important it was to him to have the family there to support him.

We got Eli and Callie bathed and in bed and left Mase and Maddie to...do what teenagers did before they went to sleep and headed for our room. As soon as the door shut behind us, I had Bella pinned up against the door and my mouth attached to the side of her neck. "I have been thinking about this since the second I walked in the door earlier," I said between kisses and licks. Her skin still tasted so good on my tongue, warm, familiar...like home, just the way she tasted when I kissed her.

"Edward," she sighed in a breathy whisper and as soon as my name left her mouth, mine was on hers.

I plunged my tongue deep into her mouth, savoring the taste and feel of her, and the feel of her body pressed tightly against mine. I ground my center against hers, letting her feel just how much I wanted her. Since I was really fucking hard, she should have been able to tell I wanted her really fucking bad.

"Fuck, Bella," I hissed when I touched her just right. I lifted her up and cupped her ass. I smiled against her lips when I heard her groan and let that hot as hell little whimper she always used escape. "All day," I rasped and tangled my fingers in her hair. "All fucking day I thought about this and then, fuck," I groaned as she palmed me through my jeans. My hips bucked against her because damn, it felt so good when she touched me...even through layers of clothes.

I gripped the bottom of her t-shirt and quickly pushed it up over her head. My eyes hungrily drank her in. Underneath her plain light blue t-shirt she had on the sexiest bra I'd ever fucking seen...or so it seemed right at that moment. Who the hell knew, really, because right then all I could think about was how perfect she looked in the lacy, ice blue bra that held her even more perfect breasts just right. I lifted one hand from her ass and traced a line from her collarbone, down her chest, and around each magnificent breast with a fingertip.

She shivered under my light touch, and her eyes stared directly into mine, turning me on even more because I could tell she wanted me as much as I wanted her. I couldn't ever get enough of her...a lifetime with her and it wouldn't even come close to being enough. I let the end of my finger dip beneath the delicate fabric of her bra and I grazed the tip of her hardening nipple. I fucking loved that she reacted to my touch the way she did, that I knew her body so well. That I knew how to touch her to elicit those breathy whimpers of pleasure each and every time we made love.

Bella's legs were wrapped tightly around my waist and I shifted her so that she aligned perfectly with my hard, almost painfully so, erection. I stepped toward her again, pressing her tightly up against the door and crushed her chest to mine. I could feel her hard nipples rub against me and I lowered my head and kissed along her collarbone. She threw her head back, letting her gorgeous, soft brown hair cascade over her shoulders and down her back. Of course the motion stretched her neck out, leaving way too much skin exposed and just begging to be kissed.

I happily obliged.

"You always taste so damn good, Bella," I whispered in her ear. "I want you, so fucking much." I licked down the side of her neck and then curled my tongue around her earlobe. "I want to be buried deep inside of you," I rasped and then let out a growl when she raked her fingernails along my scalp and then down my back. "I want to make you scream my name, over and over again, as you come and come, until you're begging me to stop."

"Christ, Edward," she breathed out when I bent my head down and sucked her nipple into my mouth and bathed the fabric covered nub with my tongue.

"Tell me what you want," I taunted her as I gently bit down on the distended flesh. I kneaded her ass with one hand and with the other cupped the side of her face, forcing her to look at me. "Tell me," I demanded. I brushed my lips back and forth across hers, not really even touching them and she arched her back off the door to try to get closer to me. I leaned back just enough, so that her hard nipples glanced across my chest, but it didn't give her the friction she craved. I could tell she was getting worked up, hell I was so damn hard I swore I would push through my jeans if I got any harder, but still, I teased her.

I wanted to hear the words.

"Edward, damn it," she ground out as she tried to writhe against me. She reached a hand out to pull me closer to her, but I wasn't having any of that. I grabbed her hand and lifted it over her head and held her still.

"Tell me, Bella," I said in a low, deep voice…the one that caused her to squirm against me and the one that made her breathe heavy. I licked at her lips, sucking her bottom one into my mouth and then nibbled on it. I swiveled my hips and pushed against her again.

I tangled my fingers in her hair and pulled gently, but hard enough to make her look at me. I didn't say anything; I just stared at her, letting her body settle against mine. There was no question what I wanted, not what she wanted either. All she had to do was say the words.

"Fuck me, Edward. Now," Bella said in a sultry voice, and I swore it was the hottest thing I'd ever heard come out of her beautiful lips. I exhaled deeply, feeling my nostrils flare as the words washed over me.

I reached between us and undid the button on her jeans and then pushed the zipper down. As soon as I was able to, I pushed my hand beneath her panties and cupped her.

"Fuck, you're so damn wet," I groaned when I touched her swollen bundle of nerves.

She flung her head back against the door the moment I touched her where she wanted it most and I knew I had to move us or we'd wind up waking the kids.

"Hang on to me," I instructed her and lifted her up to carry her to the bathroom. I kept my hand where it was and the other one held her to me as we walked. Bella wrapped her arms tightly around my neck and when I felt her hot little tongue lick behind my ear I let out a sharp hiss.

"Hurry, Edward. I need you to be inside of me," she whispered and sucked my earlobe into her mouth.

"Shit," I panted as I closed the door to the bathroom and then reached into the shower and turned on the hot water. I set her down on her feet and pushed her jeans and panties down to her feet before I undid her bra and watched it with hungry eyes fall to the ground.

There wasn't any better sight than my Bella, naked and ready for me.

Ever.

I reached behind my head and grabbed my shirt and yanked it off and flung it to the corner. Bella's hands were already undoing my jeans and the second she pushed them down over my hips she had my hard cock in her warm hand and I almost came right then.

"Jesus…fuck that feels so good," I moaned. The bathroom was filling with steam and I knew I needed to move this to the shower but she continued to stroke me and I couldn't move even if I wanted to.

I didn't want to.

Bella dropped to her knees and took me into her mouth before I knew what she was doing. My hips bucked forward involuntarily as she began to move and she took me even deeper inside her mouth. I looked down and it took every ounce of restraint I had not to come right then.

"Oh, God, Bella, you have no idea how fucking good you look… how that feels," I panted. I slid my hand into her hair and twisted it around my fingers. The other hand I lowered and laid on her cheek, my thumb tracing the line of her jaw.

"Mmmm, Edward," she breathed out when she let me slip from her lips.

"Shower, now," I ordered her. "When I come, I want to be inside of you."

She stood up and I picked her up, kissing her the moment my arms wrapped around her. As soon as we stepped into the shower I let the water run over her. When she tipped her head back into the stream of water, I bent my head forward and took a nipple into my mouth and sucked, licking up the water that rained down on us.

"Edward, now," my girl begged and I wasted no time giving her what she wanted.

I lifted her up and stepped toward the wall of the shower and when I had us positioned just right, slowly lowered her onto me. The second I was completely sheathed inside of her, we each let out the same moan of pleasure and contentment.

This was us, coming together, reconnecting after being apart all day. Even after all this time, we needed the closeness…craved it. We might not make love every day, it might even be few days between times, or hell there were times it was a week or more, but we still needed to be close to each other. Making love took things one step further, but we found we could be just as intimate cuddling on the couch or falling asleep with Eli between us.

"I love you," I breathed out as I began to slide her up and down. My fingers gripped her hips and my thumbs pressed against the sensitive skin of her sexy as fuck hipbones. Even after giving birth to two children, Bella had a body that turned me into a quivering mess whenever I saw her naked.

Hell, even clothed she was so beautiful she took my breath away, still, each and every day.

"Love you, too," she moaned. "Feels so good," she murmured and closed her eyes and threw her head back.

"Look at me," I told her. I couldn't help but want to look into her eyes as we came together. Her eyes pulled me in and I would swear I could see into her soul through the bottomless depths. They were always warm and so full of love and happiness and it made my heart fly to know that I was the one that made her feel that way. That the life we shared together made her so happy.

"So close," she whispered as she stared into my eyes.

"I love being inside of you," I told her and reached down and grabbed her hand and laid it over my chest, above my heart. "I love that I can make you feel so good, that I make you so happy."

"Oh, Edward," she said softly. "I couldn't imagine being any happier," she told me with a smile.

"You're almost there," I said. "I can feel you, pulling me deeper inside of you."

"Please, Edward...so, oh…God, so close," she answered me.

"Together, baby. Come with me; let me feel you," I commanded and thrust inside of her.

I leaned forward and kissed her, my mouth possessing hers. I kissed with everything I had, every ounce of want and need and never ending love and her walls fluttered and pulsed and I felt her come. She arched her back off the wall; her cries of pleasure filled the room and echoed in my ears.

"Oh, fuck yes," I groaned and came, hard.

She followed me again, the orgasm flowing through her and she shook in my arms until she collapsed against me in a boneless heap.

I held her for a few minutes until I felt the temperature of the water cool a bit and knew we needed to hurry or else we'd be showering in ice water. I regretfully pulled out of her, missing being inside of her as soon as I did. She pouted at me and stuck out her bottom lip. Apparently I wasn't the only one that enjoyed how it felt to be buried deep inside of her.

"We can try for round two, but we have to hurry or else we're gonna freeze to death in here," I teased her.

We did manage to finish the shower, though every bit of hot water was gone by the time we'd had our fill of touching and kissing. I wrapped her in a fluffy towel once I'd dried her off and wrapped one around my waist before we brushed our teeth and got changed for bed. After I checked on the kids and made sure everything was locked up, I crawled into bed and pulled an already half-asleep Bella into my arms. She curled up against me in her favorite position and her hand automatically found its spot right above my heart. Every night, it was the same thing and I smiled when I thought of that.

It made sense, she'd owned it completely from the very first moment I saw her.

"Hmmm, love you, Edward," she whispered sleepily.

I bent my head down and kissed the top of her head and picked up her left hand and kissed her wedding ring…just as I'd done every night since I first put it on her finger. "Always and forever, Angel."

If there was a luckier man in the world anywhere…I'd have to meet him because I didn't think anyone could be luckier…or happier than I was.

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Sigh~ I sure missed them all! I hope you liked it...sweet enough for you? LOL...Next outtake is more than half done and I plan to have it finished by the end of the year. It's an all Masen POV outtake that takes place when he is seventeen. I'm loving it so much so far, it's one of my favorite things I've ever written!**

**~Thank you~ to my dear friend _rtgirl_ for letting me borrow the word 'jezebel'! According to her, her story _Cotton Creek_ is cousins with _TPWC_, so it was all good. If you haven't read it...and first I'd ask why the hell not?...check it out now! You'll see where I borrowed the term from! **

**Be sure to check out my other story, _The Greatest Gift,_ if you haven't already! It's coming along really well and I'm soooo proud of it! Thanks to all of you who have followed along. It means more than I can tell you! **

**Don't forget to follow me on Twitter...les_sh_16**

**I hope you all have a very Merry and Joyous Christmas and enjoy the season!**

**Be sure to leave a review and I'll see you soon with the next outtake! **


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: SM owns Twilight. No copyright infringement is intended.**

**HI Everyone! Surprise...it's the next outtake -and not on a Sunday either! I got it finished and wanted to get it up right away. We've moved forward in time again. I'm so excited to get this one to you all, I've been working on it for awhile now and I love it more than just about anything I've done before and I hope you will, too!**

**Thanks as always to Laurel who got this ready in record time and to Jen and Becky for letting me bounce ideas off them. To my BFF Amanda~ We miss you so much! Come back soon, okay! Love you!**

**Enjoy...see you at the bottom~I have some big news to share!**

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Outtake # 4 – Masen**

**Masen POV~ Summer of 2019 (17-years-old)**

"Nana, I'll be back later. I'm going to meet Uncle Jasper for lunch," I told her as I headed for the front door of their house.

"Okay, dear. You have your key?" she asked before I could make it out the door and I nodded my head. "What time are you going to head home?" she asked when I looked up from the text I'd just sent my sometime girlfriend, Becca.

"Dad and Mad should be back home by dinnertime, so probably when I get back from lunch so I can make it home somewhere around there," I told her with a smile. I missed my sister, something fierce if I was being honest, and couldn't wait to see her. She'd been away at soccer camp for the past two weeks and because I didn't want to hang around the house without her, and Nana and Papa had to come back to the city for a bit, I decided to hang out here while she was gone. It wasn't that I didn't love Callie and Eli, because of course I did, but spending part of my summer vacation with my 7-year-old sister and 5-year-old brother wasn't exactly my idea of vacation.

Besides, I had something I needed to talk to Uncle Jasper about anyway...even though I'd put it off until the last minute.

"When are you guys going back?" I asked as I patted my pockets to make sure I, indeed, had my key.

"Well, your grandfather should be done with his meeting late this afternoon, so probably not until the weekend when Jasper, Alice, and the kids can come, too. You know how much your cousins adore Maddie, not to mention Ladybug and Eli," she teased me when I glared at her.

"Oh, and you, too, you big baby," she said with a roll of her eyes. "Just like your father, I swear," she muttered after she kissed my cheek.

"Love you, Nana," I called out with a chuckle as I stepped out onto the sidewalk. I figured I'd walk to lunch and then pack up my truck to go back to Lake George.

I smiled when I thought about what Nana had said before I left. Any reason at all our family could find to get together, and everyone was all for it. Nana and Papa had a house up at Lake George and had ever since Callie was born. They still came back to the city fairly regularly to take care of Foundation business, but my Nana couldn't stand to be away from her grandchildren any more than necessary. She would probably never admit it, but I had a feeling she didn't want to be far from Mama either.

When Uncle Jasper and Aunt Alice finally got married in between Callie and Eli being born, and then had the twins just after Eli, Nana and Papa started splitting their time between Lake George and the city. Aunt Rose and Uncle Em were at our house so much it was almost like they lived there, and my other cousins spent the weekend with Cal and Eli all the freaking time.

When you threw in Seth and Tanya, Dem and Heidi, and hell, Ben and Angela and even Jake and Anna and all their kids...our damn house was like Grand Central Station on the weekends. In the summer? It was even worse.

Having a huge ass family was all great and everything, but there were times it was pretty much a pain in the ass, too. Mama loved it though, and Dad...well, he did, too, except when he didn't get to spend time with Mama because she was too busy with everyone else. They had been married almost 10 years now, and he still couldn't keep his hands off her. I shuddered when I thought about it, but it made me smile, too.

My mother was still as beautiful, if not more so, than she was that day way back when, when I saw her in the park that first time. My friends...and their dads...stared at her whenever she would be at one of my baseball games, and I couldn't tell you the number of times I'd overheard some of the moms complain about how their husbands stared at her too much. They weren't really bitchy about it though, because everyone loved Mama so much, but it didn't stop them from being jealous. I couldn't really blame them, she was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen, and Dad, well he still looked at her like he couldn't believe she was really ours on a daily basis.

She was also still my best friend which brought me to what I needed to talk to Uncle Jasper about. He and I had gotten really close as I had gotten older. He always made a point to spend some time with just me whenever they came to visit or we all came to the city. It wasn't like Uncle Emmett, Seth, Demetri, or even Papa ever ignored me, but I felt closer to Uncle Jasper than any of the others. Mama said it was because we were so much alike in that we were so protective of her...and maybe that was true. Besides my dad, because let's face it, no one would EVER be as protective of her as him, there wasn't anyone else that could come close to me and Uncle Jasper...not even Aunt Rose. It was more than that though. He understood me, and I always felt comfortable telling him things I couldn't tell my parents. I didn't have secrets, our family didn't work that way, but everyone needed someone they could tell everything to. I had Mad of course, and Emily and Wyatt, who were still my best friends, but Uncle Jasper always had a way of looking at things that made sense.

As I got closer to the restaurant, I picked up my phone and called him to let him know I was almost there. "Hey, Speedy, you almost here?" he teased when he answered the phone and I groaned.

"Are you people ever going to let me live that shit down?" I grumbled and then ran a hand through my hair, exactly like my father did.

He laughed, letting me know the answer without having to give it to me. "You guys suck," I told him which only made him laugh harder.

"Aw, come on, Mase. It's your first speeding ticket, and I'm sure with your genes, it won't be the last," he told me and I couldn't help but smile at that.

Wyatt, Emily, Maddie, and I were out on a Friday night a few weeks back. It was right before school let out, and we had left the restaurant we'd stopped at later than we meant to. I didn't want to break curfew so I drove a bit...well, a lot faster to make it home on time and just as we had gotten back into town, I got pulled over, making us late getting home.

Dad tried to get mad at me, but Mama shut him up pretty quickly when she reminded him I drove like he did, so he had no room to talk. The fact that he was lucky and hadn't gotten pulled over didn't count. I'm pretty sure he never got a ticket because everyone, including the local police officers, loved Mama and well, him, too. Apparently that same love didn't extend to their offspring. It might have had something to do with the fact that I was going more than 10 miles an hour over the speed limit, though.

After a very stern lecture from Dad and Mama in which they let me know it wasn't the ticket they were mad about, it was the danger I'd put the others in by driving so fast, I had to clean Dad's office from top to bottom. I mean really clean. Wash the walls and windows, scrub the floors, the whole bit. Maddie, Wyatt, and Em helped, because like they'd said, it was just as much their fault as mine we were running late; I just happened to be the one driving that night. I could guarandamntee I wouldn't drive that fast again. Once I stopped to think about what would have happened to my best friends and sister if we would have crashed, yeah...no more speeding for this Cullen.

"Yeah, well, after cleaning Dad's damn office, I won't be speeding anytime soon, I can promise you that," I huffed, still kind of annoyed at the whole thing. I was 17-years-old; I was supposed to drive fast.

"Your dad says that all the time, I'll believe you as much as him. Now, hurry the hell up, I'm starving." He laughed and then hung up the phone.

I did as he said and picked up my pace and made it to Mr. Saul's about ten minutes later.

"Masen Cullen, how are you, my boy?" Mr. Saul boomed as soon as I stepped foot inside my favorite deli. "Your Mama, she still foolish enough to be married to your father?" he asked after giving me a bear hug. It was the same thing every time we came in here to eat, and had been for years. I nodded and showed him the most recent pictures of the family and listened to him ooh and ahhh over how much Callie looked like our mother. I couldn't argue with him, Ladybug was the spitting image of Mama, but with green eyes, and she was going to break my heart one day when she decided there was someone she loved more than me. The girl had had me wrapped around her finger from the moment she was born, and it only got worse the older she got.

My parents adored her, Maddie and Eli did, too...but me...I loved her to the moon and back - a million times or more. Maddie was my best friend, a part of me, and there wouldn't ever be any two people closer than me and my sister. I loved Eli, but he was only five. But Callie...I was her hero, her everything, and I couldn't help but love the shit out of that. It was me she searched out in the middle of a thunderstorm when she got scared or when she had a bad dream. It was me she ran to when she fell down and scraped her knee. It was me she asked to help her with her homework. She still had my dad acting like a goofball whenever she batted her eyes at him and more often than not Maddie, Mama, and her would be in the kitchen together cooking or curled up on the couch watching a movie together. Eli followed her wherever she went and she hardly ever got annoyed with him, but there was no doubting who her favorite was.

I rolled my eyes at my Uncle Jasper when I finally put my phone away and sat down at the table. "Shut it, old man," I hissed at him when he started laughing at me.

"Whatever, Mase, your sister has you so totally enamored with her, you might never find a girl she'll give you up to," he told me as he picked up his Coke and took a drink.

I smiled at him and shrugged my shoulders at him. "Ah, it's all good. Besides the feeling is totally mutual."

I really wasn't kidding. It would take a hell of a guy to be worthy of my baby sister, and even if he was the best one in the world, he still wouldn't be good enough for my Callie.

Mr. Saul brought our food, without having to order it, and left us each an extra glass of Coke and then left us alone. After eating in a companionable silence for a few minutes, Uncle Jasper asked me, "How is summer baseball going?"

I finished chewing and looked at him. "It's going really well. I was off this week which is why I came to stay with Nana and Papa," I answered, my words fading at the end because I was thinking about what I wanted to talk to him about.

"Mmm hmm," he answered and raised his eyebrows at me.

I huffed at him, kind of hating that I couldn't pull one over on him, but kind of glad he always knew when I was bullshitting him, too.

"Fine, I need to talk to you about something," I told him.

He sat back in his chair and settled in, not saying a word as he let me decide where to start. That right there was one of the main reasons I always talked to Uncle Jasper before just about anyone else. He never rushed me, just waited patiently for me to tell him what I needed to.

My stomach tied in knots and I wasn't sure how to begin...this was pretty big, at least in my mind it was. I felt kind of bad because I hadn't talked to either one of my parents, or even Maddie yet, but I needed to talk to Uncle Jasper before I talked to anyone else.

"Mase, just spit it out. You know you can tell me anything," he prodded and I nodded my head and dug in.

"Coach Henderson pulled me to the side after last week's game and gave me some...um, interesting news," I began and chuckled when his eyes got big. I guess this was not what he was expecting!

"Okay," he said, though it sounded more like a question.

"He's been approached by a few college coaches...and a few MLB scouts, too," I told him, still kind of in shock about it.

It's not that I didn't know I was a good ball player, because I knew I was, great even, but we were talking big time schools and big time prospects.

"Holy Shit, Masen, that's fantastic!" he exclaimed and then noticed that I wasn't quite as excited as he was. "Why do you look like you did when Rufus got sick?" he questioned. "Masen, talk to me. What's going on? I thought you wanted to play baseball."

"I thought I did, too," I told him and then blew out a frustrated breath. This growing up and becoming an adult shit left a lot to be desired sometimes, just saying.

"You wanna tell me what that means?" he asked me with a crooked eyebrow.

I ran my hands through my hair and then pinched the bridge of my nose, and tried not to think about the fact that my dad did the same things when he was upset or frustrated. "It's like this," I told him and gripped my glass in my hands. "Now that the opportunity is there, I'm not as sure about it as I was when it was just a dream," I told him and waited for him to tell me I was being silly and selfish, but he didn't.

For as long as I could remember, all I wanted to do was play baseball, even before Mama introduced me to Derek Jeter, which pretty much had cemented the deal as far as I was concerned. Now that it looked like I could have my dream, I didn't know if it was what I wanted.

"What else do you want to do?" he asked me, saying nothing about baseball for the time being.

I shrugged my shoulders, but I knew it wouldn't fool him. He didn't say anything, just like I knew he wouldn't, and I sighed, deciding to just tell him all of it.

Smooth fucker he was, that was for damn sure.

"Honestly? I'm not really sure. Music maybe? I love playing the drums and the guitar," I hedged.

"You love music enough to give baseball up?" he zeroed in and asked and I shook my head.

"No," I answered, knowing he knew I would say that.

Uncle Jasper folded his hands in front of him and waited for me to look at him. "Masen, whatever it is you think you want to do, you don't have to worry about making anyone but yourself happy. Now, tell me what is going on with you."

"I think I want to go to med school," I told him, admitting out loud for the first time what I wanted.

"You want to be a doctor? Like your father?" he asked and I shook my head.

I smiled when I thought about my dad. "Not like Dad, but I couldn't ask for anything better than to be like him," I told him honestly. Maybe it made me a pussy or whatever, but Dad freaking rocked and I had no problem whatsoever telling anyone and everyone that very thing. He was an amazing doctor, a kick ass dad, as far as I could tell a perfect husband, and an all around good man. If I grew up and was half the man he was, I'd be ahead of the game. "More like Papa I think, but I want to focus more on research, I think, or maybe even some pro-bono kind of thing," I finished and shrugged my shoulders.

I picked my head up to look at my uncle and was shocked as hell at what I saw. He was smiling, a huge, toothy smile and his eyes were glassy because they had tears in them. "I'm so proud of you," he said quietly, in a shaky voice. "So fucking proud," he said again and I couldn't help but look at him like he was nuts.

"What?" I questioned because really...I thought the guy was off his damn rocker right at the moment.

He held his hand up and stopped me from saying anything else. "Let me ask you a question, and think about it before you answer me, okay?" he asked and waited until I nodded my head before he went on. "What is really causing you to question playing baseball? You're only seventeen-years-old, not many kids your age would have a clue as to what they want to do with their life yet, Mase. But you, since the very first moment I met you, all you have talked about wanting to be was a baseball player. Not that I don't think being a doctor like Edward or Carlisle isn't noble, because it is, and they are both great men...but you're you, Masen. What do _you_ want to do?"

I sat still for a few minutes and didn't say anything, thinking about his questions...really thinking about them. For the past week, my mind had been going over and over what Coach Henderson had told me, and while the news was exciting, I just didn't 'feel' like I thought I would when I finally got to this place, to being so close to having what I thought I wanted.

"I want to go to med school," I answered him quietly, but confidently. He started to say something back but I interrupted him when I said, "But I don't want to disappoint Dad and Mama."

That was the hell of it all. I knew how excited Dad would be when I told him about the scouts. He had been an awesome baseball player when he was my age, he was good enough to play in college, too, if he had wanted to. Mama had been such a star athlete when she played soccer, she was the best of the best until someone took her dream away from her. I didn't want them to be disappointed that I wanted to walk away from an opportunity neither of them had been given.

"Masen," Uncle Jasper called to me quietly when I hung my head. "Look at me." He waited until I picked my head up and there were even more tears in his eyes. "Your mom and dad love you, and they will always love you, no matter what. They only want you to be happy, and if not playing baseball is what makes you happy, they won't stand in the way of that," he tried to tell me, but I shook my head.

"I know they'll always love me, Uncle J, but the thought of disappointing them kills me. They've given up so much for me to play baseball...taking me back and forth to practices, traveling to watch all of my games, sending me to camps and training sessions. Hell, Mama was at every game when she was pregnant with both Cal and Eli, even when she looked like she was about to pop," I said as I blew out a frustrated breath.

Uncle Jasper grinned and then sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, that is because your mother is the most stubborn woman any of us has ever met," he said with a smile and a shake of his head. "Mase, I know you have heard about Bell's mom, and I know she has told you about Charlie as well. It shouldn't come as a shock to you that Bella would support you one hundred percent in anything you wanted to do. Not just because her own mother didn't do the same for her, but because as parents, it's what we do." He took a breath and then said, "Your mom and dad have supported Maddie in her soccer, and they'll do the same for Callie and Eli, too; just like your Aunt and I will do for Owen and Olivia. We just want you guys to be happy, doing whatever it is you choose to do."

"I just feel like I'm letting them down, Mama especially, because I'm getting a chance she didn't get," I told him and heard him suck in a sharp breath.

"You are some kid, I tell ya," Uncle Jasper said with a sigh. "Masen, what your mom went through when she got hurt was not anything I, or Seth or Rose will ever forget. It was horrible, I'm not going to lie, but just because Bella didn't get to live out her dream, doesn't mean that she wants you living it for her. She wasn't much older than you, when she got hurt, and no one can say for sure what she would have wanted six months or a year after the World Cup anyway. People grow and change, Mase, it's a part of getting older and growing up."

I nodded at him when he stopped talking but I knew he could tell there was more, but as he always did, waited instead of pushed.

"I don't want to be that far away from home, either, Uncle J," I told him quietly. "Maybe it makes me sound like a pussy or whatever, but it's the truth. If I did the baseball thing, there is no telling where I'd end up. I know Mad is leaving, either for art or soccer, hell maybe even both, and that's fine I guess, but it's not fine for me. What if Mama needs me, or Callie, and I can't get to them? I'd never be able to handle that," I told him as my voice shook.

"You aren't responsible for them, Mase," he told me softly.

"I know that here," I told him as I pointed to my head, "but here doesn't know it," I said as I laid my hand over my heart. "I mean I love Dad and Eli, and Mad is well, between soccer and art camps, she's been ready to get out on her own for years now. I love baseball, but I don't love it enough to give up on being around to watch Callie and Eli grow up. My family is pretty damn great and I know how lucky I am to have the parents I do and the rest of you all, too, and I don't want to miss anything."

Uncle Jasper leaned forward and slapped me on the back and said, "You really are something else, kid." I was about to give him a smartass remark back about not being a kid, but Mr. Saul came to the table bearing gifts...cheesecake, my favorite!

We ate our desserts and he told me some funny stories about Olivia and Owen...my twin cousins. They were almost the same age as Eli and just as into everything as he was. The kid, I swore, if anything was ever missing in our house, chances were it was because you'd left it laying around somewhere and he swooped in and picked it up...which is why he'd been called Swoop since he was three.

We finished up, and Mr. Saul refused to let us pay, like he did every time, but like every time, we left a huge tip on the table and walked out the door after waving goodbye.

"So you're heading back?" Uncle Jasper asked me once we were on the sidewalk.

I stuck my hands in my pockets and nodded my head at him. "Yeah. Dad is supposed to pick Maddie up at the airport in a few hours so by the time I get back to Nana's and throw my stuff in the truck, I should make it back home around the same time they get there."

"Well, with the way you drive, you could probably make it there in no time," he teased me and I glared at him and then had to laugh when he laughed at me. "You make it too easy, Mase. Be careful going back, okay, and we'll see you in a few days when we come up."

He stepped forward and gave me a hug, one I returned gratefully. "Thanks for talking to me, Uncle J, it helped, like always."

He slapped me on the back and then stepped backward. "Anytime, Masen, you know that. I am always here if you need me. Love you," he said with a wave.

I turned in the direction of Nana and Papa's and started walking back, thinking over my conversation with Uncle Jasper. I couldn't wait to get home and talk to Dad and Mama...and Mad. It went without saying how much I was looking forward to seeing Callie, too. _Even Eli_...I thought with a smile. I looked at the window I was passing by and laughed when it was a toy store and there was a race car set. Swoop would love the hell out of it.

I was so lost in thought I bumped into someone and blurted out an "Excuse me," before I looked up to see who I had run into.

"Masen Cullen?" said the surprised voice and one I was positive I would never, ever hear in my entire life.

There in front of me, in a city of millions of people, was my egg donor, Lauren Mallory. I refused to even think the word mother when it came to her.

I stood in front of her, dumbfounded as I struggled to come up with anything to say to her, so I merely nodded my head.

"It _is_ you," she breathed out as she continued to stare at me.

I knew who she was...had known it for a long time, longer than Dad and Mama even knew about. After that day all those years ago when she showed up at the soccer fields, I'd known who she was. I had overheard Dad, Mama, Aunt Alice, and Uncle Jasper talking about what had happened so I knew it was her. Once I heard her name, I looked her up on the Internet and found a picture of her, just to be sure, and sure enough, they were the same person. I never told Maddie about it, but when Mama adopted us, her and Dad sat us down and told us our egg donor's name and what was going to happen once we saw the judge, and I tried not to think about her ever again.

Oh, every now and then I would think about my birth mother, wondering how someone could just give her kids away like she had. It was not like I wanted things to be different or to have anything to do with the woman, because I sure as hell didn't, but I couldn't help but wonder why. I knew Maddie did, too. We'd talked about it from time to time, but we both knew we were so much better off with Mama and loved her so much that it didn't really matter.

I mean it did...but it didn't.

"You," I finally managed to force out.

"You know who I am?" she asked, surprised that I knew.

I nodded my head and ran my hand through my hair and shifted from foot to foot as we stood awkwardly on the sidewalk while people moved around us.

She looked nervously around and then back to me and said, "Are you, do you...will you sit with me for a few minutes?" She pointed across the street to the Starbucks and said, "We can have a cup of coffee if you'd like."

I hesitated, unsure of what to do. I didn't have anything I really wanted to say...or hear from her, but it was probably the only chance I'd ever have to talk to the woman. I briefly wished Maddie was with me because I knew I would feel stronger if she was beside me, but she wasn't, so I needed to do this on my own if I was going to do it at all.

Knowing I could leave anytime I wanted, I slowly nodded my head and we made our way across the street and into the quiet coffee shop. We found a table in the back and after telling her I didn't want anything, we sat down. I stared at her while she fidgeted with the napkin beneath her cup of coffee.

She wasn't an unattractive woman, really, but of course she couldn't hold a candle to Mama, but then again, no one did as far as I was concerned. She had shoulder length plain-looking brown hair that just kind of hung there. She had washed-out brown eyes and her mouth was in a tight line. It didn't look like she smiled very much and her shoulders had that slumped, defeated look.

In a word, she looked kind of pathetic.

She shifted in her seat and finally looked at me. "So, what are you doing in the city?" she asked.

_Really_, I thought to myself. Of all the things she could have said to me...THAT was what she wanted to start with after seventeen years?

"Visiting my grandparents," I answered, not giving any extra detail.

"Ahh, I see," she said and tapped her foot on the floor beneath the table. "Having a good summer so far?"

"Yes," I answered, feeling really uncomfortable.

"How is baseball going?" she asked and I stared at her, with my mouth open in surprise. She shrugged her shoulders when I hadn't said anything for a few moments and said,"I've seen your picture in the paper. You're very good. Your sister, too, at soccer," she said and kind of sneered the word.

"You've been checking up on us?" I asked incredulously. I knew, instantly, that both my parents would go ballistic when they heard that news.

"You're my children, of course I have been," she said in a tone of voice like it made perfect sense.

It didn't make any sense, not one damn bit of it.

"No, we're not," I said slowly, shaking my head at the audacity of the woman across from me.

I mean really, what fucked up reality was the woman living in? From the time I was little and could remember, it was just me, Mad, and Dad...until Mama came into our lives. As far as I knew there had been no attempts by her to try to see us, to be a part of our lives, with the exception of the one incident at the soccer fields.

"Yes, you are. You'd still be mine if it wasn't for that damned woman," she hissed under her breath and immediately, I clenched my hands into tight fists. No one talked about my mother that way.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I demanded, wanting nothing more than to get the hell out of there.

"She took you from me. I was going to try to make things right with Edward and she stole him from me; she stole you and Maddie from me. She ruined everything," she said in a cold voice.

Okay, that was just freaking weird.

"Are you nuts? I'm seventeen-years-old and this is the first time I've ever seen you, let alone talked to you. What do you mean she took us from you? We've never been yours; you didn't want anything to do with me or Maddie," I told her, totally confused.

"When I found out I was pregnant with you and your sister, I was so young. I got scared and I made a mistake. Once I realized it, I wanted to try again, but Edward was already blinded by her. He didn't even give me a chance," she said and for a brief moment I felt sorry for her...until she opened her mouth again. "I never should have asked for money when you were born. I should have made him marry me," she said, I guess to herself but I damn sure heard her.

"You gave us up...for money?" I cried, suddenly sick to my stomach.

She looked at me, and right before my eyes I saw her mask fall away. Her eyes were vacant, cold and her smile held no warmth at all. Her eyes might have been brown like Mama's, but they weren't full of love like hers were. She might have smiled, but it wasn't the happy smile of Mama's. The woman in front of me was an empty shell of a person and all I wanted to do was get away from her.

I moved to stand up, and she reached out and grabbed my arm, her fingers bony and cold against my skin.

"You don't understand. I didn't have a choice. My parents needed money, the guy I was with was pressuring me, so it seemed like an easy thing to do. Besides, Edward had plenty of money and he was so fucking happy to be a father, I knew he'd do whatever it took to keep you, so I made him pay. I was all set to make him pay again and then that woman ruined everything," she scornfully said.

I'd had enough, and though I felt sick and felt like crying at the thought of meaning nothing more to the person that had given birth to me and Maddie than a means to an end, I had something to say to her.

I shook her hand off and slammed my hands down on the table, not giving a shit that the few people in the coffee shop were blatantly staring at us.

"That woman," I said in a shaky, but steel-hard voice, "is my mother and don't you ever forget it. She's the best thing that has ever happened to me and my sister, so thank you for making sure that she could be. And if you ever, fucking ever, talk about her like that again, I swear in front of all these people, I will make you regret it. Don't ever try to talk to me again. Don't ever try to talk to my sister. In fact, don't even think about us ever again, because if you do, you won't like what happens to you. You make me sick. Stay the fuck away from me and my family," I told her and turned around to walk away.

As soon as I walked out the door, everything came rushing back to me and I ran to a trashcan and threw up. I didn't want to, and couldn't, go back to Nana's like this so I turned and walked toward the loft; my home.

I knew I was close to losing it, but I held it together until I got to the building the loft was in and using my key, I fumbled with the lock until I opened the door and ran for the elevator to go upstairs. I was breathing heavy, my head hurt, and my throat hurt from working so hard to keep from crying. I got in the elevator, and with a shaking hand pushed the button for the top floor. I closed my eyes and leaned back against the wall, trying to keep from thinking about what had just happened.

When I reached the top floor, I stumbled out the elevator doors and raced to the door of the loft. Once I opened it and then closed it behind me, everything hit me.

I reached for my phone and hitting the speed dial, I called the one person I needed more than anyone.

"Mama," I cried out when she answered the phone, feeling my whole world crash down around me.

**BPOV**

"Eli, Callie, come on, you two. We need to run to town to go to the store so I can make Mad's dinner before she gets home," I called, sighing at the fact that kids never cooperated when you really needed them to.

I heard my phone ring and smiled when I noticed it was Masen's ringtone. Glancing quickly at the clock, I assumed he was calling to tell me he was on his way home.

"Skittles, leaving on time and everything. Good boy," I said with a smile but it faded the instant my sweet boy answered the phone.

"Mama," he choked out and immediately I felt my body go cold.

"Baby, what's wrong, are you okay? What's happened?" I asked quickly, my mind racing as I pictured him in a heap of metal on the side of the road somewhere.

I listened as he stuttered. "Lunch...Uncle Jasper...Lauren...have coffee...she said...oh God, Mama. I need you," he cried and I felt my heart break at how shattered and alone he sounded. I didn't understand what happened, but the second he said he needed me, I was picking up my purse.

Getting to him was all that mattered.

"Baby, just hang on for me, okay? I'm on my way. Are you at Nana's?" I asked quickly trying to figure out where to leave Callie and Eli until Edward got here.

_Oh shit, Edward_, I thought with a heavy heart.

"No, loft, couldn't go...wanted to be," he sniffed and took in a big gulp of air.

"Sweetheart," I said on a sob. "I'm sending Jasper to stay with you until I get there. Just hang on, okay? Mama's on her way," I told him. "I love you."

"No, just want you," he told me, and I wished more than anything that I could crawl through the phone and get to him right away.

"Mase, I don't want you to be by yourself. You don't have to talk to him, but just let him stay there until I get there, please?" I begged feeling my face wet with my tears.

Callie and Eli had walked in the room and held onto each other when they saw me crying.

"'Kay, love you, Mama," he said so quietly I almost didn't hear him.

"Love you, baby. I'll be there as soon as I can," I promised and felt myself torn completely in two when I hung up the phone.

"Mama, what's wrong?" Callie asked me and I squatted down and held my arms open to give them both a much needed hug.

"I need to take you and Eli to Charlotte's until Daddy gets home. I have to go to the city. I need to get to Masen," I told them once I stood up and started moving them toward the door, dialing Charlotte's number.

"Mama, what's wrong with Masen?" Callie immediately asked, tears falling the second she heard her brother's name. Shit, I should've known better than to let her know he was upset.

"Ladybug, I'm not sure yet, okay? I know he needs to talk to me so we need to get you two to Charlotte's so I can go to him," I told her, feeling horrible when I saw her little chin quiver.

Once I told Charlotte quickly what was going on, I got the kids buckled in the car and hurried to their house. Callie was still crying by the time I dropped them off because she wanted to come with me, but because I wasn't sure of everything myself, I told her no.

Within twenty minutes of hanging up the phone with Masen, I was speeding toward my son, saying a silent prayer that he was okay.

As soon as I hit the highway, I pushed the button on the hands free in my ear and dialed Edward, tapping anxiously on the steering wheel while I waited for him to pick up.

"Hey, Angel," he said sweetly and as soon as I heard his voice, I lost it.

I vaguely heard him, I was crying so hard and I quickly took a few deep breaths to get myself under control. That would be all I needed...to have an accident on my way to Masen.

"Shit, Bella...Baby, what's wrong?" he cried frantically into the phone and his tone of voice was all I needed to focus.

"It's Masen," I said through a hiccup.

"Masen? What...how, is he?" he questioned quickly.

I took another deep breath and with a shaky voice I told him, "I don't know, Edward. He called, too upset to even talk. All I could understand was he'd had lunch with Jasper and then somehow I think he saw Lauren and now he's at the loft, waiting for me. He needs me," I told him.

"What do you mean Lauren? What the hell is going on? I don't understand," he said. Edward sucked in a sharp breath and I could almost feel him squeeze the phone on the other end. "If that bitch," he started but I cut him off.

"You don't have to worry, if she hurt him somehow, there won't be anything left for you to do anything to," I menacingly said...meaning every damn word.

No one hurts my children and gets away with it.

I told him I'd left Callie and Eli with Charlotte and that he would need to pick them up there. "Poor Ladybug, she was so upset about Masen," I told him sadly.

"Of course she was. What are we going to do if she told him anything, Bella?" Edward asked in an anguished voice.

We had always been honest with Masen and Maddie in regard to Lauren, with the one exception of telling them about the money. We never wanted them to know they'd meant so little to her that she would give them up for money, even for as large a sum of money as she was paid. It wasn't for her, but for them and if she'd told Masen about that, there wasn't anywhere she could hide that I wouldn't find her and rip her to shreds.

"We'll deal with it together, just like always," I told him as I pressed my foot farther down on the accelerator.

"Are you okay?" he asked after a moment, and I sighed.

"No, and I won't be until I can get to him. I've never heard him that way, Edward," I told him, a fresh batch of tears falling down my face.

"I'm coming that way. I'll pick up Maddie and then we'll meet you at the loft," he said quickly, but I was shaking my head, even though he couldn't see me.

"Edward, no, sweetheart. As much as I would love to have you with me, Callie needs you. She was so upset and she'll be so worried about Masen. She needs you more than I do. Just hurry and get home to her and I'll let you know something when I get there," I told him.

"Let me call Ali and see if I can find out anything and I'll call you back in a minute. Be safe, but hurry to our boy. He needs you," he told me. "Tell him I love him," he said thickly, and I could tell he was trying to hold it together. I knew the thought of Masen sitting alone, distraught, upset him just as much as it did me. "I love you, Bella."

"Love you more," I told him and hung up the phone, immediately dialing Jasper.

When he answered, I didn't even say hello, instead I practically shouted, "Jasper, what the hell happened at lunch today?"

"Well, hello to you, too, Shortcake," he teased.

As soon as he heard me sniffle he sobered immediately. "Bell?"

"Something's happened and I don't know what it is. Masen called me, hysterical, from the loft and all I could understand was you two had lunch and then something about Lauren."

"Fuck," he said in a low growl.

I heard him moving and I asked, "Where are you?"

"Well, I was on my way back to the Foundation, but I'm heading for the loft. You're on your way?" he asked, assuming correctly that I was.

"Yes. I left Cal and Eli with Charlotte and hopped in the car. I should be there in about an hour and a half," I told him, taking into account my excessive speed. "Edward was calling Ali so she'll probably meet you there. Make sure he's okay, Jasper, please?" I begged him.

"You know I will, Bella. Now, be safe and get here. I'll call you when I get to the loft," he told me and I hung up.

Dear God, I said quietly, alone in the car. Please let me get to him. Let him be okay.

I prayed over and over, until I saw the signs alerting me I was almost there. Jasper called as soon as he'd gotten to the loft. Masen didn't want to let him in but when he threatened to call Dem and Seth to break the door down, he opened up but locked himself in his room, refusing to come out.

I whipped the car into the parking garage and threw the car into park. I flung the door open, not even bothering to shut it before I ran to the elevator and made my way upstairs. I ran down the hallway when I reached the top floor and gripped the doorknob tightly in my hand and opened it, finding Jasper and Alice sitting on the sofa. He had his arm wrapped tightly around her and I could tell she'd been crying.

"Bella, he won't come out. He just keeps asking for you," she told me.

"He didn't say anything?" I asked as I looked at his closed door and then back to them.

She forlornly shook her head and looked at me, looking devastated. I knew how much she loved Masen and how happy she was about the relationship Jasper had with him. "No. All I could get him to say was that you were his mother and he needed you. He just keeps saying it over and over."

"Have you talked to Edward again?" she asked when I started toward Masen's door.

I shook my head and said, "He was heading back to Lake George with Maddie. They'll get Cal and Eli and I told him I would call when I got here. Will you call him and tell him I'm here? I need to talk to Masen," I told her, and gave them both a hug and a kiss. "Thank you for being here."

"We'll wait here for you," Jasper told me but I shook my head.

I didn't know what had upset Masen so badly, but I knew he wouldn't want anyone to know unless he told them. "No, I think it's best if we're alone. I'll call you if I need you, I promise."

He looked like he didn't want to go but Alice stood up and pulled him up with her. "Let us know if you need anything. We love you," she said and gave me another hug, squeezing me tightly before leaving me a moment alone with Jasper.

"You sure you'll be okay?" he asked and I was anxious to get to Masen.

I shrugged and moved toward the door again. "Bella, he's a strong kid. He'll be okay," he told me and I nodded before turning from him and walking to Masen's door.

I knocked and said softly, "Baby, it's Mama. I'm here."

**Masen POV**

As soon as I heard her voice, I rolled out of bed and practically crawled across the floor to get to the door. I reached up and turned the lock and she was inside in an instant, on her knees in front of me.

"Oh, my baby boy," she cried and as soon as she wrapped me in her arms, I finally felt safe again.

I cried huge, wracking, painful sobs as I clung to her, trying to forget about what that hateful excuse for a woman told me earlier, but I knew I never would.

"Shh, Mase, it's okay. I've got you...you're okay. I'm here now...shhh, baby," Mama said over and over while she kept rocking me and kissing my head.

I didn't, couldn't, say anything for the longest time; I just let her hold me until I felt like I could finally talk.

Finally I was able to lift my head up from her shoulder. I must have looked like a mess, but I felt awful when I saw how red her eyes were from her crying.

"Oh, Mama. I'm so sorry," I told her wanting to kick my own ass for freaking her out the way I had.

"Mase, stop it. Now, do you want to tell me what's happened?" she asked me reaching out for my hand.

I stared at her hand wrapped around mine. They were so tiny, but they were the strongest hands I knew...even stronger than Dad's. They belonged to the strongest, bravest, best person I knew...that I would ever know.

I was so damn lucky.

"You're my mother," I whispered softly and then looked up at her. "You'll always be my Mama."

She lifted the hand I wasn't hanging onto up to my cheek and laid it there and I could literally feel her strength, her love for me flowing through her. "Of course I will, Masen. Even when you're old and gray, even when I'm gone, I'll always be your Mama. It will never change, nothing can change that."

"I saw...her today," I choked out, my stomach lurching at just the thought of her. I couldn't even say her name, I didn't even want to think it.

"Oh, sweetheart," Mama said sadly and then stood up. "Come on," she told me and led me to my bed. She kicked off her shoes and crawled in and patted the pillow next to her for me to lay down.

It was our thing, it was what we'd always done whenever we talked. We'd done it ever since I was seven-years-old and I kicked off my shoes and laid down next to her.

"Talk to me, baby. Tell me what happened," she told me and I did.

Through it all she stayed quiet. She narrowed her eyes when I mentioned 'she' had been keeping tabs on me and Maddie. She got downright scary-looking when I told her what 'she' said about her taking us and Dad away from 'her.' She got tears in her eyes when I told her what 'she' said about the money and what I told 'her' about never talking to me or Maddie ever again.

By the time I finished, I felt better... kind of.

I opened my mouth to say something, but then closed it, thinking better of saying what I wanted.

"Mase?" Mama questioned and I shook my head, not wanting to upset her anymore than I already had.

"Baby, come on. We don't do this, remember? You can ask or tell me anything, you know that. No secrets," she reminded me and gave me a smile...her smile, my smile, the one she only gave me. We all had one, and it was so funny but none were the same.

It was one of the hundreds of things that made her..._her_.

I took a deep breath and then looked at her. "You know I love you, right, so this doesn't mean I don't, okay?" I told her up front and she rolled her eyes at me.

"Masen Samuel Cullen, would you just spit it out already. I'm not going to get mad or upset with you. Just tell me," she said and gave me 'the look.'

I took another deep breath and asked, "Why didn't she want us? I mean, I'm happy your our mom and I wouldn't want it to be any other way...but how could she just give us...no, she sold us, like we were a car or something. How can someone even do that?"

"Baby...I'm not sure I can answer that," she said and then reached up and pushed my hair off my forehead. "Let me ask you something," she said quietly and waited until I nodded my head at her. "Does it really matter why she did what she did? If she told you she hated kids, or didn't ever want to be a mom, or if she begged you to forgive her and give her another chance...would any of that make a difference to you?"

I didn't even have to think about it before I said, "Hell, no. I don't want to have anything to do with her. I didn't before today and I sure as hell don't after today. Nothing she could ever tell me would make me change my mind about her."

"Then it doesn't matter why she did what she did. Masen, you're the amazing person, friend, brother...son you are, despite her, not because of her," she told me and again I shook my head at her.

"I'm who I am because of Dad and Maddie...and Callie and Eli...and you. I'm who I am because of all of you," I told her and I couldn't help but chuckle when she sniffed and had to wipe her eyes. She was such a softie...even worse than Dad...and Uncle Emmett.

"You're some kid," she told me and I huffed and rolled my eyes at her.

"What?" she asked.

"Uncle Jasper told me that today, too. I'm not a kid," I told her and to prove my point when she giggled at me, I stuck my tongue out at her.

After that the mood seemed to lighten a bit.

"Do you want to tell me what you and Jasper talked about? You don't have to, but we're here, we might as well spend the time wisely."

We talked about what Coach Henderson told me and I told her what I was worried about. She said almost the exact same thing as Uncle Jasper did, unsurprisingly. We talked about Maddie and soccer and her art. We talked about what I was going to do with the rest of my summer. I talked to her about Becca and some of the things I'd been thinking about when it came to her. We talked about Callie and Eli.

We talked about everything...for hours...and by the time we were done, I knew without a doubt I made the right decision about not wanting to play baseball.

We heard our cell phones going off at the same time, hers with Dad's ringtone and mine with Maddie's.

"We'd better answer those. They're going to be worried enough as it is," she told me.

She moved to get up but I reached for her hand. "Thank you, Mama. I'm sorry I freaked you out so bad."

"Well, I don't ever want to hear you sound like that ever again, that's for damn sure, but if you need me, ever, Masen, I'll come running. You never have to worry about that. You're my baby, my son, and I love you...always."

"I love you, too, and you're not just my Mama, but my best friend," I told her.

She smirked at me, and though I was being completely serious, and she knew I was, too, she said, "Such a Cullen, I swear. Poor Becca."

"Hey, I learned from the best," I hollered after her when she went to go call Dad back.

"Yes, I'm quite aware. Again, I say poor Becca," she said with a wink when she leaned back inside. "Now call your sisters, they'll be going nuts until they hear from you."

I hit Maddie's name on my phone and she answered immediately. "Mase?" she questioned, her voice shaking with worry for me.

"Sorry, Sis. I'm fine...just had a bit of a meltdown," I told her and threw myself back on the bed. "I saw our egg donor on the street of all things," and sighed when I heard her gasp. "Tell me about it. She's a fucking piece of work."

I quickly told her what happened, sparing nothing. I didn't keep secrets from anyone in my family, but especially not Maddie. She knew me better than I knew myself sometimes.

"She really did that?" she asked me, sounding so much like Callie did when she was sad, it pissed me off all over again.

"She did. But, like Mama reminded me, none of that matters now anyway. We have her...and she's the best mother we could possibly have. Maybe we should thank the bitch for giving us up so we'd get to have Mama?" I joked, but I meant it. I couldn't imagine not having her as our mother.

We talked for a few more minutes before Maddie asked me, "Are you sure you're okay"

I looked at a picture of the four of us, taken obviously before Callie was born, that I kept here in my room. It was from Christmas and we were nine. It was one of my most favorite pictures because Mama was in the middle of me and Mad and she just looked so damn happy. "I'm fine, Mad, I promise. I'll see you soon, okay? Let me talk to Cal and then I need to call Becca."

"Oohh, Becca," she teased and I growled at her.

"Shut it, you don't hear me saying anything about Nolan do you?"

She huffed because she knew I had her. "Love you, Sis."

I could hear Callie in the background and as soon as Maddie handed her the phone she frantically shrieked, "Masen!"

"Hey, Ladybug," I said softly and felt like total shit when I heard her sniffle. "Hey, now...I'm okay, Cal, I promise. Nothing for you to worry about."

"But Mama and Daddy said you were sad, I hate when you're sad. Who made you sad?" she asked me in the way only she could.

"No one for you to worry your pretty little head about, honest," I told her, feeling my heart melt at my little sister. She was going to break me one day, there was no doubt about it.

"You promise, pinky swear promise?" she asked and when I told her I did, she sighed. "'Kay. When are you gonna be home? Maddie won't give me my present until you get here."

I chuckled and told her, "Mama and I will be there soon, Cal. Love you."

"Love you, too."

I hung up the phone and laid my phone on my chest breathing in and out a few times with my eyes closed. I had the best damn family...ever.

I dialed the next number, nervous as hell. Why, I had no idea...well, yeah, I did. I was about to do something I should have done a long time ago. Besides Mama, she was the other person I thought about today. When she answered, I couldn't help but smile.

"Hey, Becca," I said when she answered her phone, her voice making my hands shake.

"Masen, hi. I was hoping you'd call."

"Listen, do you want to go out Friday night? I have something I need to talk to you about," I asked, silently saying a prayer that she said yes. I was going to tell her I loved her...I couldn't wait any longer. After talking to Uncle Jasper and Mama, I knew Becca was one of the other reasons I didn't want to play ball anymore. I wanted to see where things could go with her.

I heard her squeak and I hoped that was a good sign. "I'd love to," she said quietly and I gave myself a high-five.

"Great. I'll pick you up at seven, okay? I can't wait," I told her, completely meaning it. In only a few days, I was going to tell the first girl ever, I loved her.

Now, I just had to hope she loved me, too.

"She said yes?" Mama asked a minute later when she saw the smile on my face.

"Yep, she sure did. I'm gonna tell her, Mama," I told her.

"She's a lucky girl, Masen Cullen. Now, let's get out of here and back home. Your dad is beside himself," she told me slipping her shoes back on.

"He's not mad at me is he?" I asked, suddenly really wanting to see my dad.

"Of course not, Masen. He's just worried about you, that's all, and for some reason he won't believe you're okay until he sees you. I swear some days the man is impossible," she said with an exaggerated sigh.

"Whatever, Mama. You're as crazy about him as he is about you. I hope I'm as lucky as he is one day."

"Such a Cullen," she said.

"Damn straight, and damn proud of it, too," I told her as we walked out of my room and out the front door.

I couldn't wait to get home.

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**So, what did you think? I absolutely adore Masen, he's kind of a mini-Edward but he's his own person, too, and I am crazy about him! This was, I promise you, the absolute last time we'll ever see Lauren. I know there wasn't much Maddie again, and I give you my word I'll remedy that next outtake. **

**Now for my news...I have been chosen, and I am still in shock about the whole thing, to be in an Author Spotlight. Totally blown away, but I'm really honored as well. The interview will be posted Monday and will be on the blog:**

**www(.)sparklingwand(.)com**

**I would really love it if you checked it out! **

**Be sure to check out my other story, _The Greatest Gift,_ if you haven't already! It's coming along really well and I'm soooo proud of it! Thanks to all of you who have followed along. It means more than I can tell you! **

**I have 2 stories to rec to you~ First, you MUST check out my dear friend eternallyaddicted's Truth, Lies and Alibis. So good and it will have you on the edge of your seat from the word go. Next, my good friend AydenMorgen's Rapture~ DEAward and Ballerina Bella...enough said? It will literally take your breath away! She's also started a new story called All Falls Down...there are no words to describe just how good the first chapter was. It promises to be an amazing story! Check them both out and show them some love...tell them I sent you!**

**Don't forget to follow me on Twitter...les_sh_16**

**Hope you have a Happy and Safe New Year!**

**Be sure to leave a review and I'll see you soon with the next outtake! **


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: SM owns Twilight. No copyright infringement is intended.**

**HI Everyone! Surprise...it's the next outtake -and not on a Sunday either! We're going back in time a bit before I go forward and finish this thing up. This is the outtake I submitted for the Fandom for Preemies fundraiser and it's our WonderTwins POV from after the wedding! **

**I would like to thank whomever nominated me for The Twinklings Walk of Fame Awards for Rising Starlet! Voting is now open so please go check out the nominees and vote! **

**www(.)twinklingswfa(.)blogspot(.)com**

**Thanks as always to Laurel who got this ready in record time. And~ To my BFF Amanda~ I miss you so much! Come back soon, okay! Love you!**

**Enjoy...see you at the bottom**

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Fandom For Preemies Outtake**

**Masen POV**

"Morning, little man," Papa said to me as he sat down beside me on the bench in their backyard. "Whatcha doing out here so early in the morning?"

I yawned and then pointed at Rufus who was chasing a leaf that blew around the backyard. "Rufus needed to go outside," I told him and smiled when he finally caught it.

He sat beside me for a few minutes without saying a word and then finally said, "You doing okay?"

I nodded at him because I was doing more than okay, I was great. Mommy and Daddy had finally gotten married and we could be a family forever. It seemed like it had taken a really long time for that to happen, but I was smart enough to know it really hadn't been that long. I mean, I was eight, and got all A's in school; I wasn't a dummy.

I pulled Grandpa Charlie's badge out of my pocket and held it in my hands and thought about what Uncle Jasper and Uncle Seth had told me about him. I even remembered what Grandpa Charlie's friend, Billy, told me, too. I was kinda bummed that I wouldn't ever get to meet him, though. I mean, he was a policeman…and the one that was in charge of everyone else! How cool was that? All of my friends would be so jealous! Not that I really cared about that, but I kinda did. It would have been really cool to have been able to have him around.

I couldn't wait to go to school and show everyone the badge. Besides the stuff Mommy had Derek Jeter sign for me, this was the coolest thing I owned. I knew it was really special to her, and the fact that she wanted me to have it made my tummy feel funny. I tried not to cry when Uncle Jasper gave it to me, but I didn't do a very good job and I cried a little bit. Hopefully none of my friends would find out about that. I mean I didn't even cry when I broke my arm!

My friends already thought I had the best Mommy ever anyway. 'Course they thought Daddy was really nice, too. I had been around enough of my friends and their moms and dads to know that I was really lucky. My friend Bobby at school had to live with his Grandma and Grandpa after his parents were mean to him so I knew not everyone's parents were like mine.

I got sad sometimes when I thought about Mommy and her mom and dad. Her mom sounded like a she wasn't very nice lady. I didn't understand anything about that. Mommy was my best friend and everyone loved her so much, it was dumb that anyone would want to be mean to her. Grandpa Charlie sounded better, but I wasn't real sure about him either.

Mommy didn't talk about him very much, but ever since her and Daddy went on that trip back to where she grew up and where she met Uncle Jasper, Uncle Seth, and Aunt Rose, she's talked about him more. It used to make her really sad whenever anyone said his name. That made me sad. Mommy shouldn't ever be sad; she was way too nice to ever be sad.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Papa asked me as he looked at the badge in my hand.

I shrugged my shoulders and said, "Mommy and Grandpa Charlie. Mommy told me you tried to help him when he was really sick. It's sad he died."

Papa put his arm around me and nodded his head and said, "It is. Your Mommy tried as hard as she could to do everything she could to try help make him better. I really wish I would have been able to help him, Masen."

I nodded at him. My Papa always tried to help everyone and I knew he got real upset when he couldn't always make them better. I didn't really understand everything he did, but I knew he was really good at his job and that people from far away wanted his help all the time.

"Was he really nice?" I asked.

Papa smiled and nodded his head. "He really was, and he was pretty funny, too. When I met him he was really sick, but he always told me and Nana funny stories about Mommy and the others."

"Do you think Uncle Jasper will be my real uncle someday?" I asked.

I knew that Jasper and Seth weren't really my uncles, just like Tanya and Demetri weren't really my aunt and uncle either. But, Uncle Jasper kissed Aunt Alice as much as Daddy kissed Mommy and even I knew you didn't kiss a girl that much or look at her with that silly look on your face unless you wanted to get married.

Papa coughed and got a strange look on his face but then he smiled and nodded his head. "I do. Uncle Jasper loves your Aunt Alice a whole lot. You know we all have a lot to thank your Mommy for because without her, we wouldn't have Seth, Jasper, or Rose, and think how bad that would be. I mean, who would keep Uncle Emmett in line if it wasn't for Aunt Rose?"

I nodded my head and thought about that. Saturday when we were at that nice place with the big rooms, there were so many people in the room with us. I really did love Uncle Jasper and Uncle Seth. Seth was silly like Uncle Emmett, but he loved Mommy a whole lot. I had heard lots of stories from him and Mommy from when they were little. They were almost like me and Maddie, even though they had different moms and dads.

Uncle Jasper was so cool. He took me and Mad by ourselves at least once a week to the Museum of Natural History and told us stories about all the displays there. He was one of the smartest grownups I knew, besides Daddy and Papa.

My best friend, Adam, and I talked about the wedding before I left on vacation before Thanksgiving. He thought it was really weird that Maddie and I got to watch Daddy and Mommy get married because most kids' parents were already married a long time before them. I knew it was different than most of mine and Maddie's friends, but I didn't really care. We wanted Mommy and now she would always be with us.

I also thought it was really cool that Daddy had asked that I stand up front with him and Uncle Emmett. He told me it was to make sure Uncle Emmett gave Father O'C the ring at the right time, but I knew he really just wanted me to stand up front with him 'cause I loved Mommy as much as he did. After all, I found her first.

Rufus barked and we laughed at him when he decided to change from chasing a leaf to rolling around on the ground. I couldn't wait to move to the lake with him so he could run and play outside more. He was gonna love playing in the snow! Thinking about that made me think about being up at the lake, and then the wedding. I couldn't help but smile again.

Mommy was soooo pretty on Saturday. I knew she would be though. I also knew my mommy was prettier than any other mom, ever. My friends all said so and anytime we went anyplace, people always stared at her. I knew that lots of people knew who she was and stuff, but still. I didn't talk to anyone about this but Maddie, but I hated when we would be out places and people would stare at her. It creeped me out big time.

I remembered the first time I saw her at the park that very first day. I never told anyone, but it was really her I wanted to talk to, not Rufus. I mean he's a puppy and all, but when I saw her for the first time, I thought she was like an angel or something. Mad knew, 'cause we told each other everything, but no one else did. It was our secret.

Mad told me all the time that it was 'cause of me that we have Mommy now, but I wasn't so sure about that. I wouldn't lie, it made me feel good to think that, but who knew if it was the truth or not? I guessed it didn't really matter now that Daddy finally got smart enough, and they got married.

I was so excited when Daddy told us they were getting married. 'Course Mommy was still in the hospital when he told us so I tried not to think about that too much. It made me scared sometimes to think about it though and me and Mad talked about that, too.

_**Flashback from the Lake House~**_

"_Mase, you need to get up," Uncle Marcus told me._

_I yawned and tried to pull the pillow over my head and he shook me again. "Masen, come on, little man. You and Maddie have to get up and get dressed. We have to go."_

_There was something about his voice that made me nervous so I opened my eyes and looked at him. His hair was a mess and his shirt was buttoned weird and I could tell something was wrong._

"_Where are we going?" I asked as I sat up on the edge of the bed. _

_He was pulling clothes out of my dresser without even looking at me and I got goosebumps 'cause I knew something had happened._

_Uncle Marcus stood up and ran his fingers through his hair. When he opened his mouth to say something, Aunt Diane walked in my room with Maddie who ran and sat next to me on the bed. She pulled my arm around her like she always did when she was scared._

_When I saw Aunt Diane had tears in her eyes and I could hear Uncle Demetri moving downstairs, I couldn't help but get scared, though I tried not to show it. Maddie needed me to be strong for her. The only thing I could think of that would make everyone so sad was that something happened with Mommy and Daddy. _

_Aunt Diane came and sat on the bed next to Maddie and Uncle Marcus knelt in front of us, and after he took a few deep breaths, he said, "We have to take you two back to the city right away."_

"_Something happened to Mommy, didn't it?" I asked. I knew it did. I could feel it. My stomach had a yucky feeling in it and my chest hurt, like where my heart was._

_They each looked at each other and Maddie reached for my hand and squeezed it, hard. Uncle Marcus nodded and I felt like I was going to throw up; like it did when me and Uncle Emmett rode the roller coaster over and over at Disney. _

"_It did, Masen. Papa called and said we needed to hurry and get there as fast as we could. The car is ready downstairs and Rufus is already in his kennel. Come on," he said as he stood up._

_I felt weird and I didn't want to move. I guessed Mad didn't want to either because she still held onto me. _

_We followed them to the car and climbed in the backseat and got buckled up. The two guys that that man, Mr. Macelli, sent to help Uncle Marcus and Uncle Demetri watch the house were in the front seat. We took off and even I could tell that once we got going, we were going way faster than we were supposed to be. Something really bad had to have happened to Mommy and Daddy to make him drive so fast and it really scared me. _

_I tried to not let it show because Maddie would already be scared enough as it was. It was really weird sometimes because I could almost feel her when she got scared or was worried about something. There were lots of times when she would look at me, without telling me anything, and I would know what was wrong. I knew when I played ball and I got nervous when it was my turn to bat, I could feel Maddie sending me good thoughts and I could always tell when she smiled at me. _

_Uncle Marcus and Aunt Diane kept talking real quiet to each other and I couldn't tell what they were saying. But sometimes you could tell just by the way someone said something, like Daddy did to Mommy sometimes, that there was something really bad going on. I didn't know why people didn't just tell us what was wrong. Me and Mad weren't babies, and we knew a lot more than they thought we did anyhow. Like I had said, we were smart kids; we figured out way more than they knew. _

_It seemed like we made it to the hospital where Papa worked in no time, and as soon as I knew that was where we were, I got even more scared. Maddie grabbed my hand and we followed Uncle Marcus inside and when we got to where the rest of the family was and saw Daddy for the first time, and he was crying, I knew it was bad. _

_When we saw Mommy for the first time, I didn't even believe it was her at first. I mean it looked like her, and Daddy told us she was sleeping, but she wasn't like she always was. She was so still; she didn't even move at all. And she was cold, and Mommy wasn't ever cold. _

_I didn't mean to get so mad at Daddy when I yelled at him, but I was just scared that she wouldn't ever wake up. I mean, what would have happened to us if she would have stayed asleep. She was the only Mommy we wanted and I didn't want her to die. I knew all the grownups were scared that would happen. You could tell by the way everyone was so sad and the part of the hospital she was in. Daddy probably forgot, but he told me one time when we came here to find Papa, that where we were now was where the people who were the sickest and hurt the most stayed so I knew it was bad she was here._

_It was so scary when she was sleeping and it took that long time to wake up. Daddy was always so sad, even though he tried not to show it when he was with us. He always took us to the cafeteria so we could eat together and he tried to ask us about school and stuff, but you could tell he just wanted Mommy to get better._

_I hated that lady that hurt Mommy. Nana and Papa always told us it was bad to hate anyone. I usually tried not to, but I couldn't help it this time. I mean, why would she want to hurt Mommy that way? And when I saw how sad Daddy and Maddie were, I really, REALLY hated her, lots. _

_When she woke up, it was the best day ever. Well, the day she said she would be our mommy was pretty great and then when she and Daddy told us they were finally getting married, that was awesome, too. Everyone felt so much better once she woke up. It took awhile for her to not hurt and I was happy it didn't take very long for her pretty hair to grow back. _

_**End of Flashback~**_

"Come on, buddy, time for breakfast. Nana made chocolate chip pancakes for you guys," Papa said.

"Rufus, come on," I called for him. "Papa, what time are Mommy and Daddy going to get home. I want to see them."

"You miss them already?" he asked with a smile and I nodded.

I did. Maybe it made me a big baby, but I didn't care.

My mommy and daddy were the best, ever.

**Maddie POV**

"Mase, what's the matter?" I asked my brother as I sat down next to him on the sofa. I knew there was something bothering him 'cause I got that feeling I got sometimes when he was worried or wanted to talk to me about something.

It felt funny to be at the loft without Mommy and Daddy. They were supposed to be coming home from Lake George right now and Nana said they'd be here pretty soon. We'd been home from school for just a little while and Mommy had told us they would be home before dinner.

I sighed and laid my head on Masen's shoulder and watched him play Super Mario Wii. I missed Mommy and Daddy, even though it had only been two days, well one really, since we'd seen them. Mase knew that ever since Mommy had been hurt, sometimes I got scared about something happening to her again, like it did before. He kept telling me that it wouldn't and that the mean lady wouldn't hurt her anymore, but I still worried. It was so bad when it happened the first time.

Talking to Dr. Benedict about it all helped, but nothing really helped as good as talking to Masen. He was my best friend, even more than Nolan was. I knew he tried to make everything better for me and sometimes it made me sad that I wasn't as strong as he was. I mean, he didn't even cry when he broke his arm and got scared when all those people were chasing him and Mommy! I guess Uncle Emmett kept all those people from getting to him, but Masen was still really brave!

Masen made a funny sound and I picked my head up and looked at him. His forehead was wrinkled like Daddy's got when he was mad at Uncle Emmett or when Aunt Alice was bugging him. He didn't say anything, but I could tell he was thinking about stuff.

When he got to a place he could pause his game, he threw the controller down and sat back. He ran his hands through his hair, and he looked just like Daddy did, when he did the same thing.

"Don't you think it feels weird being here?" he asked me and I nodded my head since I just thought the same thing.

"How much longer do you think it will be before they get here?" I asked as I looked at the clock again.

He shrugged his shoulders and said, "Not sure, but probably not much longer. Mommy said they'd be here before dinner and she always does what she says."

"I'm so happy we're all married now," I told him.

"Yep, me, too. I mean, Mad, you know Daddy is the only one really married to Mommy right?" he asked and I rolled my eyes at him.

I punched him in the shoulder and said, "'Course I know that, silly, but Mommy and Daddy both said we were all married now, so I'm saying we are."

"'Kay, just making sure you knew for real. Hey, Mad," he asked as he looked back at Nana in the kitchen to make sure she didn't hear him. "Are you ready to move? I mean I'm gonna miss Papa and Nana and stuff, but I want to go to the lake, don't you?"

I looked at Nana just like he did and then whispered, "I do. I'm sad about leaving everybody and I like my room here cause Mommy did it, but yeah, I'm ready."

I reached up and ran my fingers over my new locket and smiled. Everyone at school today asked me about it and I told all my friends about how it had belonged to my Grandpa Charlie's mom and that Mommy wanted me to have it now. I didn't tell anyone about the letter she gave me before we got dressed on Saturday though.

Yesterday when I woke up, I curled up into my special chair and read her letter to me. It said:

_**My Precious Maddie,**_

_**Today, is a really special day. I'm marrying Daddy and after today, we'll always be a family. Forever. Someday when you're older, I will tell you why that means so much to me, but for now, just know that you and Masen are the most important people, besides Daddy, to me. **_

_**I am giving you a very special necklace today so that you will always remember that from today on, you will have me, Daddy, and Masen with you.**_

_**Things get scary sometimes, Maddie, and I know there will be times that we can't all always be with you. When that happens, you can just look inside your locket and remind yourself that your family will always love you and will always be here whenever you need us. **_

_**I'm so happy you and Masen chose me to be your Mommy. I've loved you both since the first moment we met, and I always will. Even many, many years from now when it is hopefully your turn to give this locket to your daughter, I will still be your Mommy and I will always want what is best for you and for you to be happy. **_

_**Love always,**_

_**Mommy**_

I knew that Mommy's mom wasn't a very nice lady. I remember the story she told us about Cinderella. I couldn't help but kind of hate her for being so mean to Mommy. I mean Mommy was so nice to everyone, I just didn't understand how anyone could be mean to her.

'Course I didn't understand why that mean lady tried to hurt her either. I knew Mommy and Daddy, Dr. Benedict, too, had all tried to explain that she was sick and her brain told her things that weren't true, but it was still wrong and really bad what she did.

"Do you think Mommy and Daddy will have a baby? Don't you think it would be neat if we had a baby brother or sister?" I asked him. I knew lots of my friends had baby brothers or sisters. I thought it would be so great for Mommy to have a baby. I wanted a baby sister. I could help Mommy with her and when she got bigger, I could play with her and then help her and protect her like Masen did me.

Masen smiled at me and nodded his head. "Oh, Sissy, that would be so awesome! Can you just imagine if we had a baby brother! It would be so cool!"

I nudged him with my knee and gave him my look. "No, Mase, I want a sister," I said as I shook my head.

"Well I want a brother," he told me and crossed his arms at me.

I didn't know why he wouldn't want a sister. Baby boys, just ugh.

I got a sad thought and I must have made a sound because Masen poked me until I looked at him. "What?"

My eyes got tears in them and I tried to bend my head down so Nana wouldn't see. "What if Mommy and Daddy like the new baby more than us? I mean the baby would really be Mommy's and we aren't," I whispered. "I changed my mind. I don't want Mommy to have a baby…ever!" I told him as I closed my eyes and shook my head.

"Mad, cut it out," Masen told me. "You know Mommy loves us lots, I mean look at the presents she gave us. We got to get married with her and Daddy."

"But, Mase, when she has a new baby, she could love it more than us. What if she wanted to give us back, like our real mom did?" I asked.

I didn't like to think about her…ever.

"Sissy, don't say that!" Masen yelled at me and Nana looked over at us. We both turned back to the TV and waited until she stopped looking at us before he started talking again. "You know Mommy wouldn't ever do that!"

I felt tears in my eyes again and felt bad for saying what I did. "I know, but it scares me sometimes," I whispered really soft. "What if that lady that went to my soccer game that one time is our real mom? What if she tries to take us away from Mommy and Daddy?"

He scooted closer to me on the couch and bent his head by mine. "I won't let anyone hurt you, I promise," he told me and I nodded my head at him cause I knew he wouldn't.

"You think that lady is our real mom, don't you?" I asked him.

He had told me what happened that day and how upset Mommy, Daddy, and Aunt Alice all were. When he told me about that lady grabbing him and then asking who I was, I got goosebumps and then I got mad. Nobody grabs my brother like that. Daddy may have gotten mad at us sometimes, but only when we'd been bad and he'd never grabbed us like she did him.

"I do. She really wanted to know who you were and she knew Mommy." He giggled and I looked at him. "You should have seen that lady's face when she saw Aunt Ali, it was funny. She looked like Uncle Seth when he saw that spider that one time."

I laughed at that. Uncle Seth might have been one of Mommy's bodyguards but how someone as big as he was could be that scared of spiders was just silly.

I opened my locket and looked at the picture of Mommy and Daddy inside of it and asked Masen, "You don't think she could ever take us away from here do you?"

We watched the news sometimes and I knew that there were lots of bad things that happened, even to kids. Daddy and Nana had taken us to the shelter where they helped a few times and it made me sad to see kids like me and Mase there. I knew we were really lucky to have Daddy and now Mommy.

He shook his head hard and grabbed my hand. "No way. Daddy would never let that happen…and neither would Mommy. It doesn't matter who our real mom is, Mad, Mommy is with us now. We love her and she loves us. It'll be fine, promise."

"'Kay," I told him, cause I knew if he said it would fine, it would be.

"Hey, you two, why don't you go get started on your homework and get done before Mom and Dad get home. Daddy just sent a text and said they'd be home in about an hour, which gives you plenty of time to get finished. You don't want to have to mess with it later, do you?" Nana said and we both shook our head.

When they got home, I didn't want to have to do anything except see them so we hurried to our rooms to get done. I had Math, which I hated, but only because it was hard for me sometimes. Mommy always laughed at me because she said I was just like her. She didn't like Math either, but she loved to read just like me. It made me feel good to do something like her.

I got my Math and my Spelling done really fast and then helped Masen get his Spelling done. He was really good in Math, like Daddy, but he didn't spell so good.

Once I put away my homework in my folder and put my backpack away, I heard Rufus barking and knew Mommy and Daddy were home. I tried to beat Masen to the door, but I didn't. He was really fast. As soon as the door opened, Mommy and Daddy walked in and Daddy picked me up and gave me a big kiss on the cheek.

"I missed you, Princess," he said as I hugged him real tight around his neck. I loved the way he smelled. I didn't know exactly what he smelled like; I only knew it always made me feel better.

"I missed you, too!" I told him and kissed him again. He rubbed his nose against my cheek and his face was scruffy.

I wiggled so he would put me down so I could see Mommy, too.

"Peanut Butter Cup, how was school today?" she asked me when she bent down to give me a hug.

"It was fine. I got my homework done already and so did Mase," I told her as she gave me a kiss.

She smiled at both of us and said, "Good job! That means we can watch a movie tonight instead of having to do homework!"

We clapped and then they talked to Nana for a minute before she left, too.

Nana had made spaghetti for dinner and we got the plates and stuff out to put on the table.

"So, did you guys have fun at the party after the wedding?" Daddy asked while we were eating and both of us nodded our heads.

I laughed and said, "I did. My favorite part was doing the chicken dance with Uncle Emmett. He's so silly!"

"No kidding! I've had to live with him for a long time," Daddy said, shaking his head.

"My favorite part was eating the cake!" Masen said and I had to nod my head at that. Both cakes were really good, but I liked the white cake better than the chocolate one.

"I can't wait until Paul gives us the pictures he took. You both looked so nice," Mommy said with a smile.

"Not as pretty as you, Mommy," I told her. She was the prettiest mommy, ever.

Daddy kissed her on the cheek and got that silly look on his face he got _all_ the time whenever he looked at her and said, "I have to agree, baby. You were something else."

"Edward, stop it." Mommy giggled but smiled at him.

After we ate we had to help clean up the dishes and after we put on our pajamas we picked out _Night at the Museum _to watch. I loved that movie, especially the statue that always wanted the gum.

I kept thinking about what Mase and I talked about and when the movie was over I stood up and faced Mommy and Daddy on the couch.

"Mase and I want a baby brother or sister," I told them with my hands on my hips.

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Hehe! How cute were they? No wonder why they kept pestering Edward and Bella for a little brother or sister so much, huh?**

**Well, we're getting close to the end now folks! I'm planning on doing Maddie/Masen's graduation and then Maddie's wedding. That will be it for the futuretakes and then for the outtakes from the story, we'll see the lost scene from Edward's first time up at the lake when he watched Bella play the drums (pssst, that means garage sexin) and then I'm going to do an alternate scene from the last outtake in which we'll see what might have happened if MamaBella decided to give Lauren a piece of her mind. **

**I'm still debating on the short story centered around Masen. I have some really good ideas, let me know if you'd like to see that! **

**The PDF of _TPWC_ and the outtakes is just about ready to get posted. I'll put up a message when it's ready. Laurel has worked so hard on it, and I'm so very, very grateful to her for all her hard work to make my words as pretty as they can be! We'll be replacing the chapters posted on Ffn, too.**

**I hope you all have checked out my other story, _The Greatest Gift_. I know a lot of you have and I'm so thankful for the continued amazing support! **

**See you soon with the next outtake! Review and let me know what you think!**

**Erin~ (les16)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: SM owns Twilight. No copyright infringement is intended.**

**HI Everyone! Surprise...it's the next outtake -and not on a Sunday either! Happy Valentine's Day! **

**Thanks as always to Laurel who got this ready in record time. And~ To my BFF Amanda and my BFF #2~Love you both!**

**Enjoy...see you at the bottom. You will need tissues and a cold shower...or so I've been told.**

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Outtake # 5 – The Love of a Daddy**

**EPOV~ May of 2020**

"Crap!" I heard my oldest daughter holler out from her room down the hall.

Deciding that wasn't an ordinary crap because Callie had been in her room or because Eli had taken something he wasn't supposed to touch, I figured I should go check on her.

When I looked in the room, I found Maddie with her headphones in her ears, eyes scrunched closed, and her head thrown back against the wall beside her bed. If I didn't have a pretty good idea already what was causing her so much distress I would have laughed at her, but considering I knew, I didn't.

I knocked on the door frame to let her know I was there and when she looked up at me, I swore in an instant I was transported back in time, not seeing the daughter that was about to embark on a new adventure...without me...but instead my little girl who still thought I was all that and a slice of cake. The little girl who jumped on my bed every Sunday morning before Mass to tell me it was time for pancakes, the little girl who squealed in delight every time we went to the park and I pushed her on the swings, the little girl who had the kindest heart and the sweetest smile I had ever seen.

My Maddie, my princess...my pride and joy.

"Daddy," she sighed when she looked up and saw me and I walked in her room, shaking my head as I went.

Her room...was a disaster area. Worse than any boy's I'd ever seen; even Emmett and Demetri's from way back when. Of course it was understandable, but still.

"I know, I know," she said with a sigh again when she saw me shake my head. "I'll get everything packed and then the rest put away, I promise. I just have to get this done first," she told me as she waved a notebook around in the air.

I sat down on the bed and scooted back to sit next to her, both of us with our backs against the wall. I threw my arm around her shoulder and I couldn't help but sigh myself when she snuggled right up next to me, in the spot that had been hers for almost eighteen years now. Bella had hers on the other side of course, the spot right above my heart on my chest. Callie had hers, too, on my left shoulder, but that right side, right in the crook of my shoulder and chest...that was Maddie's and it always would be.

"Now, what's up, Peanut Butter Cup?" I asked and smiled when she giggled at me.

"You can't call me that; that's Mama's name for me," she told me.

"Well, we just won't tell her I used it. What's going on?" I asked.

I waited while she got her thoughts together. Maddie was never one to say anything without thinking it through first. Callie could certainly use a few lessons in that department from her older sister. I loved my Ladybug, but damn, there were times she said things that made me shake my head.

"I don't...I mean...it's just everything, Daddy," she finally said quietly.

Well, that was...vague.

"Mad, you have to give me more than that. Come on, you know you can tell me. Do you want me to go get your mother?" I asked, thinking if it was something she couldn't or wouldn't tell me, she'd at least tell Bella.

She immediately shook her head, and said, "No, I'd rather talk to you, if that's okay?"

I smiled and squeezed her shoulder. It wasn't as if she didn't know I wouldn't tell Bella anyway, and vice versa. Our family didn't work that way. Never had, never would. Even when Mase went to Jasper first, he always told Bella and me whatever it was. Sometimes whoever the kids talked to first was based on who was home at the time; sometimes it had to do with the subject matter. If Mase was having problems with Becca, and when wasn't he, he went to Bella. If Callie had trouble with her homework, she went to Masen. If Eli had gotten at trouble at school...and again, when wasn't he, he told Maddie first. When Maddie had a big decision to make, she came to me.

I turned and kissed the side of her head, and told her, "Of course it's okay, Princess. Now, talk to me, what's got you so frazzled?"

She took a deep breath and picked her head up off my shoulder, looked at me, and then in a rush said, "I can't figure out what I want to say in my speech; I'm scared about leaving, and Nolan is mad at me about something and I have no idea what it is." Once she'd spit all that out, she let out a big gust of breath and blew her hair out of her face and then stared anxiously at me hoping I had all the answers.

I couldn't say I was at all surprised by what she'd said...well except the Nolan thing and figuring that was the easiest topic to address, decided to tackle that one first. The leaving one...yeah, I'd definitely save that one for last.

Didn't want to think about that...at all.

"Why do you think Nolan is mad at you?" I asked.

She rolled her eyes and looked so much like Bella I couldn't help but smile. When I heard the telltale sniffle and saw the end of her nose get red, I knew the tears wouldn't be far behind and I couldn't have that. If there was anything that was my absolute downfall, it was when any of my girls cried. Bella, Maddie, Callie, didn't matter; the first tear that fell and I was done for.

She shrugged her shoulders and hung her head. I sat up and reached for her hands and took them in mine and noticed, not for the first time, how damn small they were. "Baby, talk to me, what's going on?" I asked quietly.

She blew out a frustrated breath and then looked up at me and I was struck, yet again, that my baby girl...wasn't a baby any longer.

It really sucked, too.

"I don't know. Every time we talk on the phone or get on Skype, he acts all weird and stuff. He'll be nice one minute and then the next he's acting like a jerk. I asked him earlier if he was coming up next weekend for graduation and he told me he'd check and see what he had going on and then let me know," she huffed. "I mean, I know he has other friends besides me, but still. I'm leaving soon. I just thought he'd want to see me before I left. If he doesn't come up next weekend, I'm not going to see him all summer."

Okay, yeah, I was seriously reconsidering my thought that this conversation would be easier than any of the others...sometimes I really was a fucking idiot.

"Mad, I'm sure he's not upset at you. Maybe he had a bad day today or maybe Travis was being a butthead," I said with a snicker.

The dude still got under my skin, not gonna lie.

"Whatever it is," I told her seriously, "I'm sure you two will work it out. You guys have been friends for half your life, baby, you'll work it out. You always do," I reminded her.

I had a feeling I knew what was going on with Nolan; it wasn't really too hard to figure out. The kid had eyes, and though I might be a bit...well a lot partial...Maddie was beautiful. If I was to guess, I'd say Nolan's feelings had begun to change, if they hadn't already, toward his best friend. Bella and I had talked about this before, many times in fact, and I wasn't sure how I felt about it to be honest. Nolan was a great kid, a hell of a lot better than that Wesley guy that was for damn sure, but she was still my baby girl. Not to mention if things ever got serious...Travis and I would be semi-related. Ugh!

But, we weren't worrying about me right now, Maddie was still upset so I focused back on her.

"What's the problem with the speech?" I asked, changing the topic. It wasn't closed yet, I was sure, but I needed to see what else was bothering her.

She picked up her notebook and then flung it back on the bed with a disgusted look on her face. "I can't get what I want to say to come out right. I wanted my speech to be different and I for sure didn't want to do the 'you can be whatever you want to be' speech that everyone else does. I just..." She sighed dramatically, "I wanted to say something else."

"Your mom and I are so damn proud of you, baby, you know that, right?" I asked and she giggled and rolled her eyes...again.

"Daddy, ever since final GPAs were posted and I found out I was Valedictorian, you and Mama haven't stopped smiling, or bragging about it," she told me and bumped my knee with hers.

I laughed because there was no way in hell I could even argue with her. I was so fucking proud of her, if I didn't think she would get so mad at me she wouldn't talk to me for a month, I would take out a billboard and post it for everyone in Lake George to see. As it was, everyone from Emmett, to Rose, to Demetri, to Tanya had called her daily to tell her how proud they were of her and offered to help her with her speech if she needed it. Emmett and Demetri had already started making plans for what they were going do when she was done giving her speech. With those two there was no telling, but at this point, it was useless for any of us to threaten them with anything. Secretly, I had no intentions of trying to stop them, only because Maddie deserved all the recognition she could get for being Valedictorian.

It wasn't as if we weren't proud of Masen, because Lord knew we were, incredibly so, but Maddie had worked so damn hard to get to where she was. Between her schoolwork, soccer, and her art, she was always busy doing something. She spent a lot of time in the city volunteering at the shelter when she had spare time, though admittedly as she'd gotten older, there hadn't been a lot of that to go around.

Soccer took up so much of her time; so much so I had a tendency to worry about her overdoing it, but Bella was adamant about the fact that if it ever got to be too much for Maddie, she'd tell us. We never pushed her, only encouraged her. It was hard sometimes...hell a lot of times, to put her on a plane to this or that camp, but she'd been doing it for years now. Jasper and Bella had always said Maddie was going to be better than Bella was, and damned if they weren't right. I had a hard time admitting that, but that was only because I thought Bella was perfect in everything she did, but even I couldn't deny the level of Maddie's skill. Thankfully with Bella's experiences, it was a bit easier to navigate through all the camps and the showcases, and even the identification pools she had to go to. Once she hit her senior year, the offers for scholarships poured in, which surprised us all, though it probably shouldn't have.

She was going to be spending the summer with People to People, playing soccer all over Europe. It was going to be an experience she wouldn't ever forget and when her club coach had come to me and Bella and asked if Maddie could go, we knew we couldn't say no. The only stipulation I made, because I had to, was that we would meet her in Ireland for her birthday. Me, Bella, Masen, Cal, and Eli along with my mom and dad were going to spend two weeks in Ireland so we would all be together for hers and Masen's birthday. I wasn't missing it for anything. Besides, I'd always wanted to take Bella to Ireland and this was the perfect opportunity.

"Sue me, Princess. I'm proud of you; I can't help it," I told her. "Now about your speech, Mad, don't put so much pressure on yourself. I know you want it to be perfect, because you wouldn't be you if you didn't, but it'll be fine. Just start writing and see what comes out. You'd be surprised, I bet, to find that if you write what comes from your heart instead of worrying so much how it will sound, it will just flow. Just promise me not to ask your Uncle Em or Seth for suggestions. There's no telling what kind of answer you'd get."

"Don't worry, I won't. I talked to Aunt Rose a little bit and she helped some. I know I'll get it; I just really wanted it to be something special," she huffed.

I couldn't help but smile. My sister-in-law had the softest of soft spots for my oldest daughter. It was so strange how both Maddie and Masen had found their go-to people in Jasper and Rose, I guessed it had something to do with the twin bond thing they all had going on. I couldn't count the number of times I'd come home from work and smile when I'd see Rose's car in the driveway. It happened even more the older Maddie got. Rose might have lived an hour and a half away but I would swear her car could drive itself from her house to our house because she'd driven it so many times. She didn't stay long either, but if Maddie needed her, she'd drop everything, get Lucy, Lila, and the twins Luke and Landon in the car and head to our house.

Our family might have been spread out all over the place, but we were closer than most could believe. The cousins all got along and couldn't wait to spend time together and each of us grownups had our own little shadow it seemed like...Lord knew there were plenty of kids to go around. Just like Masen and Maddie had a special bond with Jasper and Rose, Callie and Eli had their own, too, with Emmett for Cal and Seth for Eli. Seth and Eli could be found way more often than not planning some sort of elaborate...something or other. Whether it was the biggest living room tent you'd ever seen or a fort made of boxes in the backyard, those two were something else. Emmett and Callie, I thought with a shake of my head. No wonder some of the things that came out of her mouth stopped me dead in my tracks... definitely two peas in a pod those two. Em's daughter Lucy was my little tag along whenever we were all together and had me as wrapped around her finger as my own daughter's did. She was as funny as Emmett, as beautiful and no nonsense as Rosalie, but as sweet and gentle as her Nana.

Dem and Heidi got married and started their family in short order once Callie was born. As a matter-of-fact, there was still a bet as to whether or not Heidi had been pregnant when they got married or not...not that it mattered at all. They were so ready to be married and loved each other so much, neither cared. Their son, Aidan, thought the sun rose and set on Bella's head and besides his mother, there wasn't anyone in the family he adored more than her. Their daughter, Mia, loved Jasper something fierce and was a little spitfire when he didn't pay enough attention to her. Ali and Jasper's twins, Owen and Olivia, split their time between Tanya and Heidi, and Rose and Em's other daughter, Lila, and Alice were as thick as thieves. The other kids were still too little, but there were bets on who would be who's favorite; Demetri had already laid claim to Luke and Landon.

Tanya and Seth had, finally, welcomed their own bundle of joy not too long ago. My best friend's pregnancy was not an easy one, but with Travis's expertise and a lot of praying on the part of all of us, we welcomed little Harrison Clearwater to the world a little over a year ago. There really wasn't a medical reason why it had been so hard for Tanya to get pregnant so there was hope they'd be able to have another one, though with Tanya's age, the chances were slim. All I knew was that mine and Bella's best friends were beyond ecstatic and it really seemed like once little Harry arrived, our entire family was complete. Throw Ben, Angela, and their kids along with Jake, Anna, and theirs into the mix and we could populate a small town...or fill out a complete football roster at the very least.

I knew Maddie would figure it out and I didn't want to put even more pressure on her. "Maddie, if you need any help, you have a ton of people that can help you, but you'll make it great. Write the speech you want to give, not what you think people want to hear. You've earned the right, so keep that in mind, Princess. It's your moment to shine and to be rewarded for all your hard work. Make it what you want," I told her and didn't even try to hide the fact that my voice shook.

"Thank you, Daddy," she said quietly and then leaned forward to hug me.

My throat constricted and I tried like hell to keep from crying because...well, I didn't want her to see how badly her leaving was affecting me. There would be plenty of tears to go around when the time came to put her on the plane and send her across the ocean so for now, I was going to try to keep things as unemotional as I could. I didn't have much hope in succeeding to be honest, but hell, it was worth a shot at least.

I ran my hands up and down her back and squeezed her to me, my mind instantly flooding with memories of little girl scents of shampoo, soap, and freshly washed clothes. Over time the smells had changed and the scents of fresh air and sweat mixed with charcoal and paint were added to make a smell that was as unique as my little girl. I patted her once more and then shifted to lean back against the wall again.

I had a feeling addressing this next topic was going to cause me to need all the support I could get and because Bella wasn't in here with me, the wall was going to have to do it...at least until I could go to Bella. If I made it that long, that was.

Wrapping my arm around her again, I pulled her next to me and ran my hand up and down her arm for a bit before I said, "Now, what about leaving has you so worried? You know you don't have to go, in fact, as you've barely started packing, we can just scoop all that mess up and throw it in your closet and pretend you weren't leaving at all." I was only half-joking.

She swatted my stomach, which I was proud to admit was almost as flat as it was when Bella and I had gotten married. Hey, at this stage, I'd take 'almost' any day. My girl still knew her way around a kitchen, even more so than before and I had to work fucking hard to stay in shape. Of course, I reaped the benefits because more often than not Bella worked out with me, so it was well worth it.

"I'm not afraid to go, well not really. I know I've never been away from home as long as I'll be this time, but I'll be with most of my friends so it'll be fun. I'm excited to get to play in all those great places...I just wish you guys were all going to be with me. It's not the same when you all aren't there to support and watch me," she said quietly after a few moments of silence.

"Oh, baby, you know if we could all go with you, we would, but we just can't be gone that long. I have patients and Callie and Eli have camp and your mom needs to be here to help get Masen ready to go to school," I told her, feeling like shit.

She surprised me when she giggled. "I know that, and to be really honest with you, I don't really want you guys following me anyway. I'm nervous about being by myself but I'm excited, too. You know what I mean?" she asked and picked her head up.

Fuck, I did know, but it didn't make it any easier to hear either. My little girl didn't need me as much any more and as much as that was the way life worked, it broke my heart just the same. But, she needed to know it was okay to feel that way and that I understood, so I plastered a smile on my face even though on the inside I felt like curling up into a ball and crying. "Of course I do, Mad. It just means you're growing up, as much as I hate the thought of that. You don't need me or your mother as much anymore; it's what becoming an adult is all about," I told her over the lump in my throat and the pain in my gut.

"I'll always need you and Mama, but I'm ready to start getting out on my own and doing my own thing," my little girl told me sounding more grown up than her old man.

I leaned forward and kissed her forehead again, and didn't move my lips for a few seconds and then finally had to pull back. "We'll always be here if you need us, baby. This summer is going to be an experience you won't ever forget. Enjoy it. Have fun, play well, and show them what Madeline Grace Cullen is made of. We'll be cheering for you, even if we can't see you." I reached down and held her locket in between my fingers and whispered, "We're always with you, Mad, even if we're thousands of miles away. I love you, so much, my little Princess."

She threw her arms around my neck and squeezed and it took all I had not to lose it right then and there. It wasn't like I didn't want her to see me cry, but she had enough to worry about without worrying about her father having a nervous break down, so I held it together, but just barely.

After making sure she was okay and kissing her one more time because I just couldn't help myself, I left her to work on her speech.

I laid my hand on the door of Maddie's room, feeling my heart break into tiny pieces in one instant and then swell with pride, adoration, and love in the next. I walked toward my room, thinking about our talk. She'd grown into an amazing, self-confident, loving young woman...all thanks to the woman that was laying in my bed.

"Hey, Angel," I said softly as I shut the door behind me and leaned against it, too taken in by the way she looked to move.

Bella laid down the notebook she was furiously writing in, plans and menus for next weekend if I was to guess, and smiled at me. Her hair was down and she was wearing one of my t-shirts. Her glasses were perched on her nose, she'd scrubbed her face...and she took my breath away.

The same as she'd done every day for eleven years.

"I was getting lonely waiting for you," she said. "Is Mad okay?"

I nodded, still not moving from the door. "Just nervous about a bunch of stuff...the speech, Nolan...leaving," I told her, and I pouted at the last one.

I was really going to fucking miss my little girl.

"Baby," she sighed and then held her arms open for me.

I didn't need to be asked twice.

I shed my shirt and my shorts, leaving them in the middle of the floor, crawled into bed, and laid my head in her lap. Her fingers immediately went into my hair and I closed my eyes. She didn't say anything, just hummed along with the iPod in the docking station and alternated between scratching my scalp and then massaging it. Every now and then she'd let my hair slide through her fingers and of course because she was as ornery now as she'd always been, pulled my hair just to keep me on my toes. I smiled against her leg, her skin silky smooth beneath my cheek.

"She's going to be okay," she told me softly but thankfully didn't stop her movements.

I'd draped one of my arms across her legs and I squeezed, shrugging my shoulders but not answering her. Deep down I knew she'd be fine; she'd been going away to camps and tournaments for years now, but it didn't make it any fucking easier to be honest with you. This was different though, because once she got back to the States, she'd be heading for North Carolina almost right away.

I was losing my little girl, and it sucked...big time.

"Talk to me, baby," she said after a few more minutes.

"I'm losing her," I said softly and tried like hell to keep my voice from quivering.

This had been building; I knew it had. I tried not to think about it. I tried to tell myself that I was acting ridiculous. I tried telling myself that at least Masen was staying close to home and that Cal and Eli still needed me. None of that helped one damn bit honestly and it still fucking hurt.

"You know, I can still remember the very first time I saw her," Bella went on in her gentle voice. "She was this prim and proper little girl, practically afraid of her own shadow. She loved her brother and her daddy, her Nana and Papa, her crazy uncle and hyper aunt, the rest of her family, and that was about it. She was shy, sensitive, but man could that little girl light up a room with her smile and her laugh sounded like bells it was so sweet," she said with a light laugh.

I closed my eyes, picturing in vivid detail the way Maddie had looked that day in the park all those years ago. The day all our lives were changed forever. One of the best damn days of my life, without question.

Bella's hand ran through my hair and then she caressed the side of my cheek with her fingers. I reached up and pulled her wrist to my mouth and kissed the sensitive skin there, and felt her pulse beneath my lips. I still hadn't said anything, too many thoughts flying through my brain.

She pulled her hand back and resumed running her fingers through my hair. I had no idea where she was going with this or what she was going to say but what she was doing felt too damn good to even think about telling her stop.

"It didn't take long at all for that little girl to come out of her shell, to become the person she wanted to be. She laughed more, she talked more...she argued more," she said with a snort.

God, wasn't that the truth? Girl should really consider going to law school; she'd give Ali a run for her money, no doubt about it.

"She became an athlete, an artist, and a straight-A student. She had boyfriends," she giggled when I growled, "she got her heart broke and broke a few of her own along the way. She's the best sister anyone could ask for, the best friend, not to mention the best daughter. Edward, Maddie will always need you. She'll always need me, Mase, Callie, and Eli, too. We have raised an incredible young woman, and as much as you want to keep her locked away from the big, bad world, you can't. You're her daddy; you always will be. No one will ever take your place," she trailed off.

Funny thing was, we'd had almost this exact conversation not too long ago when it was her feeling like Masen didn't need her anymore. He'd gotten his acceptance letter to Dartmouth and instead of telling her first, he told Becca. Talk about a reality bites moment. To say she didn't take it well would be a fucking understatement if there ever was one. She'd been devastated and it took a hell of a lot of reassuring her that there was no one in the world Masen loved more than his mama. And now, here we were...we were definitely quite the pair.

"Pot, meet kettle," I murmured and I knew she could feel my smile against her leg.

I rolled over and looked up into the eyes that were always so full of love and happiness and really just downright joy. The ones that could stop me cold in my tracks when she was mad at me...which happened way more fucking often than I liked to admit and the ones that made my cock hard when they were looking at me like I was a piece of the world's most delicious piece of chocolate...I REALLY liked that look. The ones that were right now looking at me with the understanding and wisdom that came from being my other half, of being the person that knew me better than anyone.

She lowered her hands and ran her thumbs across my forehead, my cheeks, and then my lips. I puckered my lips and and gave them a kiss which caused a sweet giggle to escape from her mouth.

God, I loved her.

"You've been an amazing father to our daughter, Edward," she told me and then got that little hitch in her voice she always got when she was getting sentimental.

I raised my hand and cupped the side of her cheek and smiled at her. "Thank you, baby, but we're kind of a team, you know. You've been pretty damn incredible yourself," I told her honestly.

I'd seen plenty during my career as a doctor. Being a pediatrician gave me an insight few others were ever privy to. I'd seen over-indulgent parents, mostly absent parent, clueless parents, and even unfortunately, parents who had no idea what the word meant, but in all my time as a doctor, I'd never, ever seen a man or woman that could rival my Bella's natural ability to be a parent.

She was effortless in everything she did, it didn't matter if it was rushing in the morning to get everyone ready to go, cheering at a soccer or baseball game, being the classroom mom, staying up all night sitting in the bathroom with a sick kid, or laying in bed talking quietly with any one of them; she was absolute perfection. She had her moments, she was only human after all, when she lost her temper or snapped, or blew one of them off when she was having a bad day, but she more than made up for it with hugs, kisses, and laughs.

God we laughed.

There wasn't a day that went by in our house when it wasn't full of laughter. Whether it was because Eli had done something silly, or Callie said something outrageous, or because Maddie and Masen were bickering back and forth and then dissolved into hysterics, it didn't matter. There was always the sound of laughing, every damn day. Things were going to be so different when Mad and Mase left and I wasn't anywhere close to being ready to let them go...either of them.

She placed her hands on both sides of my face and I could tell there were a few tears in her eyes because the tip of her nose was pink. Eleven years with my love had definitely taught me a thing or two. I waited for her to speak knowing she was going to miss our kids every bit as much as me.

"It's going to be an adjustment for all of us when they both leave, but, it's just the way things are supposed to go. As much as I want to keep them both here with us forever, it doesn't work that way. Besides, maybe we'll finally get to spend some time with Callie once Masen isn't here to monopolize her every waking moment," she teased...sort of.

My poor Ladybug...she wasn't handling Masen leaving well...at all. She wasn't her mother's daughter for nothing.

"Ah, hell, Angel." I sighed and turned so I was facing her extremely flat and toned stomach. "I know we're all acting like a bunch of babies, but I don't give a shit. I love my kids damn it, and I know I did the same thing and went off to college. I know they're going to do amazing things with their lives and I know they're going to have experiences that will stay with them forever...but I'm going to miss them, so fucking much," I said in an uneven voice.

"Babies, hmph," she teased and her eyes sparkled at me.

I lifted her shirt, well my shirt, and pressed a soft kiss against her tummy. I wrapped my arms around her waist and then pushed her back onto the bed.

I kissed her because I couldn't go another moment without doing so. I lifted her shirt over her head and touched her...everywhere. I needed to feel her, connect with her because although our family was changing, my absolute and total need for my wife never changed. If anything it only grew stronger the longer we were together. As long as I had her by my side, I could endure anything.

"I love you, Bella," I whispered when I found her lips again. "So fucking much," I hissed as I rocked against her.

Before I knew it, we were both naked and as I moved in and out of her, staring into the eyes that glowed with love for me, our family, and our life, I knew no matter what, we'd be just fine.

**Maddie POV**  
"Mad, can I come in?" Masen asked when he knocked on my door a few days after my talk with Daddy.

I dropped another stack of clothes on the floor...to add to the already huge piles and stepped through the maze of books, bags, and soccer gear to open the door.

I opened it and he snorted. "Damn, you're never going to be able to find what you're taking with you in the middle of all this shit. Mama will have your ass if it's not cleaned up before Saturday," he said with a shake of his head and then flopped down on my bed.

"I know, I know," I told him and my stomach turned when I thought about Saturday.

Just like it did every time I thought about Saturday. Graduation was only a few days away and I still had yet to finish my speech. I just couldn't get the words to come out right, even after talking to Daddy the other night. It was stressing me the hell out and I felt like I could burst into tears anytime anyone asked about it.

"You done writing it yet?" Mase asked me.

I shook my head, not surprised at all that he knew exactly what I was thinking and then crawled onto the bed beside him. If anyone could help me figure out how to finish it up, it was my brother. He smiled at me and then reached over and pulled the blanket over our heads, just like we'd always done whenever we had one of our talks.

I was going to miss him so very, very much.

"Okay," he began once we were settled. "What's going on? What is stressing you out so damn badly? I know you can't be worried about being in front of people because you've been playing in front of crowds all your life. It's just a speech, Mad," he said softly.

I'd folded my hands beneath my cheek and stared at him for a minute. We were twins, but he looked exactly like Daddy where as I was a cross between Daddy and Nana. It went without saying how much both of us were relieved we looked nothing like our egg warmer, not that I ever gave that poor excuse of a woman any thought at all. Up until that fiasco last year, I supposed I'd always harbored some sort of childlike imagining where she was concerned, but after finding out what she said to Masen, I never wanted to think about her again. Mama was our mother; we'd chosen her a long time ago, and nothing would ever change that.

As I looked at my brother, my very best friend, I realized how much our lives were going to change. We'd always be close, I wasn't afraid of that changing, but there wouldn't be anymore late night talks beneath blankets, or camp outs in the living room with Callie and Eli. There wouldn't be any laying on the trampoline, under the stars, talking to Mase, Becca, Wyatt, and Emily. There wouldn't be any more Sunday morning pancake breakfasts before Mass. There wouldn't be any impromptu soccer games in the backyard.

Once Saturday came and went, everything would change.

"As excited as I am about going to Europe and then starting school at North Carolina, I don't want to leave. I want everything to stay the same, but at the same time I don't. I'm so confused," I told him and didn't even try to stop the sniffles that came afterward.

I meant what I told Daddy the other night, I was really excited to go to Europe and I was looking forward to being on my own a bit, but it didn't mean I wasn't going to miss my family either. Growing up sucked sometimes.

"Awww, sis," Masen said softly and then leaned forward and kissed my forehead. "We're all going to miss you, too, you know, but it's not like you won't ever come home again," he told me.

I wiped my eyes and my nose and nodded my head. "I know, Mase, but it's going to be different, you know it will. Even with you, you're staying close to home, but you and Becca are going to be doing your thing, too, and making new friends...and things won't be the same."

"I suppose you're right. I'm scared, too, but excited just like you," he told me.

In the end, Masen decided to accept a baseball scholarship to Dartmouth. He talked a lot with Mama, Dad, and Uncle Jasper, but in the end it was Becca that convinced him to keep playing if that was what he wanted to do. Medical school came after college anyway, so there was no point in stopping playing if he didn't want to. If he didn't want to play after college, he could make that decision when the time came, but until then, she encouraged him to do what he loved. We'd all told him the same thing, but of course it was her he listened to more than the rest of us.

I knew I was extremely lucky when it came to Becca. We got along great and she was one of my best friends, besides Nolan, Wyatt, and Emily. It would have sucked big time if we didn't like each other and I understood immediately how Masen felt when he didn't like Wesley. He hadn't had to worry about too many guys after Wesley; I didn't have that many boyfriends. Actually, besides Wesley, there had only been two others that I had dated for any length of time. Most of the guys were intimidated by my brains or how athletic I was...and if that didn't scare them off, Masen and Wyatt did anyway. I didn't mind so much, really. I didn't have time and I didn't want to mess with the drama of having a boyfriend. I got asked out on plenty of dates and hung out with Masen and the others so I didn't feel like I was missing out on too much.

Masen and I talked for a bit, just catching up and chatting about which graduation parties we were going to and what not before I asked, "Did you need anything or were you just feeling the need to tease me about the disaster my room is in?"

"Nah, I didn't really need anything. I just wanted to talk to you...like we used to," he said quietly. "I knew you hadn't finished your speech; I just wanted to make sure you were okay is all."

"Thanks, brother. I'll figure it out, I still have two days before I have to get it approved," I told him. "I just want to make sure I say everything right, you know?"

He nodded because I knew he did know, he always did.

"You'll figure it out, sis, I have faith in you. Just remember, you're gonna make Mama and Dad...and more than likely Uncle Em cry, so be prepared for that," he said with a crooked grin.

I laughed, because he was right. There was no way Uncle Emmett wouldn't cry and well, Mama and Daddy would cry because that was what they did.

The rest of the week passed, I didn't sleep much, but I did finally get my speech turned in on Friday. We had a half day and then graduation practice and by the time I made it home, the house was full of all my family...and Nolan.

"I just wanted to surprise you, Mad. You didn't think I'd miss this did you?" he asked and gave me a hug. It was a slightly different hug than usual, a little longer and tighter, and definitely involved more touching and I had to admit, I was pretty okay with it.

The night was full of lots of food and lots of laughing and even though I knew things were changing for me and Masen, I knew we'd always have our family and a place we could always go home to.

**BPOV**

"There you are," came the gentle voice of Edward. I knew it wouldn't take him long to realize I was gone and I knew he'd know exactly where to find me.

I'd escaped to the garage as soon as Maddie, Masen, and the other older kids left to head to the next graduation party. Callie and Eli were going to spend the night at Carlisle and Esme's with Lucy, Owen and Olivia, Aidan, and all the rest of the younger kids and though I loved my family beyond measure, I needed a few minutes of quiet, alone time to think about the day.

Maddie's speech of course was perfection and made me cry, laugh, and swell with so much pride I was surprised I didn't explode. I was a hell of a mother, I knew that and wasn't ashamed to admit it, but to hear what she said, well, it was more than I ever expected. I wasn't perfect, but I knew there wasn't a day that went by that my kids didn't know how much I loved and supported them, even when they made mistakes.

Edward and I had an amazing family and we worked hard, every single day, to make our house a home. We loved each other with abundance, we hugged and kissed each other and the kids without reservation. We were loud and boisterous, and at times probably even obnoxious, but I didn't care. I was proud of our family, proud to be Maddie, Masen, Callie, and Eli's mom, and just as much if not more, proud to be Mrs. Edward Cullen. Not because he was the best-looking man in Lake George, or the sexiest...or the most aggravating, but because he loved me and our family with everything he had.

I looked up at him and sighed. He really was the most incredible man, ever. I knew today had been just as bittersweet for him as it had been for me, maybe even more so. It wasn't a contest though, we were both going to miss both of our kids so damn much.

He pushed off the doorway and wordlessly made his way to the couch. He immediately picked me up and then set me on his lap. He kissed my forehead and then pushed my hair back over my shoulder. He didn't say anything for a few moments, just stared at me with the green eyes that brightened every one of my days. "You okay, Mama?" he asked after another moment.

I nodded because, really I was. I was heartbroken about Maddie and Masen leaving, but was so excited for them, too. "Yep, I just needed a few minutes of quiet," I told him softly. I picked up his hand, just like I did every time, and played with his fingers and his wedding ring.

He chuckled. "You would think Em, Dem, and Seth would outgrow their need to act like idiots whenever we all get together."

"Not a chance, baby," I said with a giggle when I pictured the three of them having a hot dog eating contest earlier. Emmett won of course, and paid the price since he'd spent a good portion of the rest of the afternoon in the bathroom. It didn't help any that Rose stood outside telling him 'I told you so' every time a noise would come from the room.

I really didn't want to know the particulars of what kind of noise it was either, and the guy was scrubbing my bathroom with bleach, too. I loved my brother-in-law dearly, but not that much.

"Did everyone leave already? I didn't mean to be antisocial and not say goodbye," I told him quickly when he nodded at me.

"It's okay, Angel. Pop and Mama took all the kids and Uncle M and Aunt Di back to their house and all the rest of them went to Ali and Jasper's," he answered me.

Yes, not only did Carlisle and Esme have a house up here, so did Alice and Jasper. Ours was still the one we always wound up at, but it was nice that everyone didn't always have to be here.

"So, we're all alone?" I asked, and immediately any unhappy thoughts I had left and were replaced by the fact that there was no one around to bother us.

Hell yeah.

"Mmmm hmmm, it would appear so. Whatever shall we do with our free time?" he asked in that sinful voice that still made my skin break out in goosebumps.

I pretended to yawn and covered my mouth. "I'm kind of tired. I think I'll just go to bed," I said in a mock serious voice and moved to get off his lap.

"Not on your fucking life, Bella," he growled and gripped my hips. He pulled me back onto his lap and before I even had time to take a breath, his mouth was on mine. He hungrily kissed me and pushed his tongue deep into my mouth. I melted in his arms, giving him complete control of my body.

He pushed a hand into my hair and held the back of my head. Before long, we had to breathe and his lips slid from my mouth to my neck. I tipped my head back, giving him full access to do whatever he wanted.

Knowing we were completely alone had flipped a switch in me and I was on fire. Edward and I still had plenty of sex, thank God that hadn't changed over the years, but there were few times we actually got to completely let go. Too many little...and big...ears around and too many interruptions. We always made an effort to spend plenty of time alone, just the two of us, whether that was taking a walk around the lake, or snuggling in bed watching a movie, or even a night out at the Inn at Erlowest when Callie and Eli were with their grandparents.

However, there was something incredibly exciting about being home alone with my husband.

Apparently, he felt the same way, considering I could feel how hard he was against the side of my thigh. I felt his hands slide up my leg, his fingers strong and powerful, though never too rough. Edward always knew how to touch me just right; he always had. I'd worn a short dress to the graduation ceremony and I hadn't changed, even though I exchanged flip-flops for the heels I'd worn earlier. Everywhere he touched my skin tingled and I could feel my panties dampen with each passing second.

I reached up and wrapped my arms around his neck, scratching at the base of his scalp exactly how he liked. I heard the deep rumble of pleasure in his chest and that sound did things to me that should be illegal.

"Fuck, Bella," he rasped and then nipped at my neck.

"I do believe, Edward, that is the plan," I told him as I licked up the side of his jaw. I didn't stop until I got to his earlobe and I flicked it with my tongue before I bit down on it, kind of gently, but not really.

His fingers inched closer to between my legs, to where I needed him to touch me and he said a harsh, "Shit," when I bit him again.

He picked me up and set me on his feet in front of him between his legs. "Turn around," he ordered and I felt my body ignite from the rough, needy way he sounded. I felt his fingers grab the zipper and pull it down. He leaned forward and kissed the center of the small of my back right above my panties. He gripped the sides of my dress and pulled so that it fell from my shoulders. He rested his hands on my hips and then turned me around so I was facing him. I looked down and his eyes were almost black, his nostrils flared and I went weak in the knees when I saw him lick his lips.

"So fucking beautiful," he whispered, and it almost sounded as if he was talking to himself.

His hands slid from my waist to my ass and he pulled me toward him. My eyes rolled back in my head when I felt his nose rub against my clit and felt his warm breath against my damp panties.

"You're not particularly fond of these are you?" he asked when he looked up and I shook my head. I let out a shriek of surprise when he ripped the panties off me. That quickly changed to a groan because as soon as the ruined material was gone, his mouth was on me. I threw my head back and grabbed his shoulders.

"Edward, ah...oh hell...feels so good," I said between breaths.

His tongue was wicked, flicking and licking...sucking and nipping... over and over again. "Mmmm, my Bella...you taste so damn good," he whispered against my wet pussy. The sound of his voice mixed with the vibrations of him talking about sent me over the edge, but apparently he wasn't quite done sweetly torturing me yet. He flattened his tongue and licked from bottom to top and I swore I almost saw stars I squeezed my eyes shut so tightly. "Are you ready to come?" he asked.

I looked down at him and nodded my head because I couldn't speak.

The evil man just smirked at me and raised his eyebrows...and did it again. "Fuck," I panted, so close to coming it hurt.

"I asked if you were ready," he said. He teased my entrance with his thumbs and I arched against him, trying to grind against his fingers but he held me back. "If you answer me, Bella, I'll let you come," he teased again.

"Edward, damn it, yes. I want to come," I growled, though I was sure it came out more as begging, but I didn't care.

"Good girl," he purred and then went to work again. His tongue and his fingers worked in perfect concert with each other, in and out in and in circles until I came so hard my legs shook. "That's it, come for me," he told me.

"Oh...God..." I yelled, not caring how loud it was because no one would hear it.

"No, just me, Angel," my devil incarnate husband said in a gravelly voice.

He stood up and pulled me to him, kissing me deeply. Without any reservation whatsoever I ground my dripping, hypersensitive center against his extremely hard cock and kissed him, tasting myself on his tongue. I grabbed his shirt and didn't bother to waste time with buttons and instead ripped it open. As soon as I pushed it off his shoulders, I licked his chest, taking time to flick at each nipple. I lowered my hands and undid his jeans, plunging my hand inside his boxers the moment I had enough room to do so.

"Bella, damn, baby," he hissed when I wrapped my fingers around him. He reached down and pushed his jeans over his hips and then stepped out of them when they fell to the floor.

His hands were in the middle of my back, holding me tightly against him. Somehow he managed to get my bra undone and it fell off my body and then, thankfully, we were both naked.

"Edward." I sighed when I wrapped my arms around him and felt his body against all of mine.

"I know. I feel it, too," he whispered. He bent his head down and took a hardened nipple in his mouth and sucked. He moved from one the other and my stomach tightened with each teasing moment that passed.

I pressed my thumb against the tip of his cock and pulled his hair, hard, when he bit down on the hardened nub. "Edward, fuck me...please," I begged when I couldn't stand it any more.

Actually, I'd passed that point minutes ago, but everything he was doing felt so good I was greedy and didn't want him to stop.

He lifted his head and chuckled. "I wondered how long it would take you to ask me that, my naughty little girl," he told me in a smooth, velvety voice. The one that made my hair stand on end and flooded between my legs with heat.

He picked his head up and removed his lips from my collarbones which earned him a pout.

"Patience," he said slowly. "We have all night, you know. I'll fuck you and then make love to you over and over again until you can't see straight," he said and I actually shook when I heard his words.

"Mmmm, yes. All night, over and over again," he told me and reached out and trailed his finger across my collarbones, down my chest, around each breast, never touching my sensitive peaks. Across my stomach and then farther down between my slick folds. Our eyes never left each other's and the blacker his turned, the more turned on I became.

I loved when Edward was gentle and tender, because Lord in Heaven knew the man knew how to love me until I was a boneless heap, but when he looked at me like he was a vampire and I was his next meal, I couldn't help but wish he would throw me down and suck me dry.

I whimpered, pitifully, I knew but damn it all, I wanted him.

Right fucking now.

He must have heard me, and even though his eyes stayed just as intense, I could tell he wanted me as badly as I wanted him. Thankfully, he couldn't wait any longer either and pulled me toward him again. "Do you have any idea all the things I want to do to you?" he rasped in my ear before he sucked on my neck. "I can't decide whether to make you come with my fingers, my tongue, or my... cock," he teased and ground himself against me.

"Edward, be inside me, please," I begged. I'd already felt his tongue and his fingers, I wanted him inside of me, buried deep and fucking me hard.

"With pleasure," he whispered in a sultry voice.

He turned me around so I faced the back of the sofa and pressed on my back so that I would kneel on the edge. He stepped behind me and nudged my knees apart. His hands ghosted down my back, followed by his tongue and lips. He reached down and grabbed my hands and then lifted them to the back of the sofa, curling my fingers over the edge. He kissed my shoulder again and then held onto my hips. I felt him, hard and ready, rub against my ass and I wantonly pushed back against him.

"Edward," I moaned again. The teasing had been delicious, but I wanted...needed him inside of me.

His fingers pressed down on my hip bones and in one simultaneous movement, he pulled me back, hard, against him and he entered me.

"Oh...God," I panted, when he was buried as deep as he could get.

He grunted, and I heard him hiss. "Ah...shit, Bella...baby," he groaned as he moved in and out. "So fucking good," he said.

He was so deep and he hit that most sensitive spot over and over again. Our bodies were in perfect sync, I would push back as he pushed forward and it never...ever felt so good. His talented fingers didn't want to be left out and he reached around my body and slid them through the slick heat of my pussy and found my clit. The circles he made corresponded perfectly with each thrust and I could feel the coil in my stomach wind as tight as it had ever gotten.

"You're close. I can tell," he whispered in my ear when he bent over. "I want you to come. Come and let me feel you on my cock," he demanded.

I heard that little whimper, growl sound I always made whenever I was so turned on I couldn't see straight and I straightened my arms out so he went even deeper inside of me.

"Ah...fuck," he said through clenched teeth. "Yesssss," he breathed out, not stopping his fingers or his movements in and out.

I felt the coarse hair of his thighs rub against the back of my legs, I could see the muscles of his forearm flex when I looked down at the hand that was between my legs. I knew if I could see into his eyes they would be almost black and the corded muscles of his neck would be tight while he ground his teeth together.

This was the Edward no one ever got to see but me...the one that fucked me hard and took control of my body. The one that was fierce and demanding and could make me come undone over and over again, and it still never felt like it was enough.

I really, really missed this Edward.

He took my clit between his fingers and pinched. I hung my head and tried to keep my eyes open, but I couldn't. Everything felt so fucking good...and I was so close.

"So close, Edward," I managed to say.

"Then come damn it. I want to feel it. Come for me...do it," he ordered.

He pressed down hard on my clit and thrust forward, bending his knees and practically lifting me off the edge of the sofa with his cock. "Now...fucking now."

"Yes...oh God...yes!" I screamed and came in a blinding fury.

He didn't stop, didn't let up, just kept pumping over and over again as I came in wave after wave after wave. His cock and his fingers in and out, around and around, until my legs shook and I slumped forward.

"Oh, I'm not done with you yet," he hissed and then pulled out of me.

I didn't even have time to miss him being inside of me before he was sitting on the sofa and I was straddling his thighs. "When I come, I want to see you," he whispered fiercely.

He lowered me on him and we both groaned when he was inside of me once more. I rocked back and forth on him, staring into his eyes.

"I love you," I whispered. I felt so overcome with everything all of a sudden. My love for him, my absolute need for him, to feel connected to him.

He reached up and held my face and wiped his thumbs across my flushed, heated cheeks. His fingers pushed back the damp hair that stuck to the side of my face and though his eyes were still burning brightly, they had changed back to the bottle green I loved so much. "I love you, Bella," he said back gently.

This was what we were all about. The fucking was all great and good, and God knew we both needed that from time to time, but the slow, all-consuming coming together was what we both craved.

I reached around him and gripped the edge of the sofa again. Edward leaned his head back and rested it on the back of the sofa. I bent forward and kissed along his shoulders and his neck as I slid up and down him. "I love you, Edward...so fucking much," I whispered against his skin. "I love being with you like this, feeling you fill me," I told him. The electric current that always seemed to surround us was buzzing and crackling, I could feel it. "Do you feel that, Edward?" I asked when I picked my head up and stared into his eyes. "That's us, baby, coming together again," I whispered.

"Oh...Bella," he hissed when I clenched my pussy around him.

"You're my whole life, everything I need and want," I told him and I felt my eyes burn with tears.

"I'm always here, Angel. Together, forever, remember?" he asked and then grinned.

"Not long enough," I told him instantly.

"I know," he answered back.

"Come with me," he commanded.

Our bodies got in perfect sync once more. I leaned forward and kissed him, hoping he could feel everything I couldn't find the words to say. I knew he could judging from the fact that he grew even harder inside of me and his hands had slipped from my waist to my ass. He dug his fingers into the flesh and helped guide me up and down him.

"Close, I'm so close. Come with me, please?" he panted.

I nodded and leaned backward a bit, arching my back and settled on his strong thighs.

"Fuck, yes, Bella...just like that."

I moved my hands from the back of the couch to his shoulders and hung on. I tightened my pussy again and I knew I was going to come any moment.

"Again, Bella. Do that again," he ordered.

I clenched again and he let out a breath between his clenched teeth. "Look at me."

Our eyes met once more and I knew he was as close as I was to letting go.

"Together, my love. Come with me," he said softly.

The change in tone of his voice about did me in just then. I increased my speed just enough to feel his fingers press harder on my ass and knew it was just a matter of moments before he let go.

"Edward," I breathed out, feeling my walls begin to flutter.

"Baby, yes...now..." he said between breaths.

"Oh...God..." I yelled out as I came in a powerful burst. It felt like I could come forever... and when I thought I was at the end, Edward threw his head back and let out a feral groan and came, pulsing and shooting inside of me shouting, "Bella!" and I came...again.

I shivered above him from the aftershocks of my extremely intense orgasm and rested my forehead against his. I heard him chuckle and opened my eyes to look at him.

"Yeah, the kids most definitely need to spend more time with their Nana and Papa. That was fucking unbelievable," he said with a smirk. He pushed my hair back over my shoulder and rubbed his hands up and down my arms. "You okay?" he asked sweetly.

"Hmmmm, let me think about that for a second." I giggled when he narrowed his eyes at me. "Of course I'm okay. That was...yeah, I needed that." I sighed. I ran my hands over his chest and marveled yet again how sexy he still was. Not that I ever thought that would change, mind you.

No chance of that happening...at all.

We sat that way for a few minutes until my legs got too sore and then he laid us down on the couch, pulling the blanket off the back and covered us up. My back was against his chest and every few seconds he'd kiss my shoulder, the top of my head, or he'd nuzzle my neck. We didn't say anything for the longest time, though in all reality it was only a short while until he finally said, "I know it's going to be a big change when the twins leave, Bella, but I have to tell you, I'm really looking forward to having more of you to myself."

I had let my fingers dance over his forearms and I didn't stop while I listened to him talk. As soon as he was finished, I felt my body mold against his even further. "I can't either. As much as I'm going to miss them, it will be nice to have a bit more quiet time for just the two of us. I know Cal and Eli have their own things going on, but I'm looking forward to things slowing down some. I miss you when we don't get to spend enough time together," I said softly.

"Angel." He sighed and then rolled us so that he was above me. He dipped his head down and kissed the end of my nose and then each of my cheeks before giving me the sweetest of kisses on my lips. Not too hard and not too soft, but just the perfect blend of love and tenderness. He brushed his lips against mine and then nibbled on my bottom lip before sucking my tongue into his mouth. He massaged my tongue with his and kissed me until I was dizzy. "I love our kids and our family, but you are my everything. My wife, my lover, my very best friend...my heart and soul. Everything, baby, everything we have together is amazing, but it's the times when I get to have you all to myself that I feel the most connected to you. I need that, so fucking much," he whispered against my mouth and then kissed me again.

"I do, too, Edward. I love you and I always need you," I told him as I pushed his hair back off his forehead.

"Mmmmm, that's good to know...because I need you...right fucking now," he breathed out and filled me again.

We spent the rest of the night trying to quench our need for each other, but knew we never would.

And...that was all right.

We had forever.

**~~~~OOO~~~~OOO~~~~**

**Oh, I've missed them so much! Can you believe our WonderTwins have graduated from high school? My, how time flies! Next outtake...will...I'm sad to say, be the final futuretake for our Cullen family. I will do the outtake from the garage from Chapter 20 since I have promised a very special someone that particular scene for months now and the alternate scene with Bella and Lauren, but that will be all she wrote. **

**I am really leaning toward doing the Masen short story since I've left him wide-open in this one so I can take that path if I want to. It wouldn't be for a little bit, but I can't quite let Mase Face go yet. I don't know about you, but I want to see what happens with him and Becca and whether or not he chooses baseball or med school! **

**I want to take a moment to thank each and every one of you for making this story one of the top 100 reviewed stories of last year! I am so very grateful and I am so happy you've loved this family as much as I have! You all are the best! **

**Erin~ (les16)**

**Here is the link for the PDF of The Path We Choose and Off The Beaten Path if you would like to download a copy of it.**

**www(.)box(.)net / shared / cvi43x9i2igzqkf7q9du – remove the brackets and spaces.**


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